New Crystals, Old Dreams
by GraceRichie
Summary: What happens when Sarah has lost all memory of the Labyrinth & all of its inhabitants? More importantly, what happens when she's forced to remember? Will Jareth be forgiving or will it be the bog for Sarah?
1. Dreams Relived

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own any of these characters in any way what so ever. I am merely taking previous characters and molding them into a STORY of my own. These characters belong to Jim Henson and the actors/actresses that made them their own. **

The hazy late afternoon sun set the autumn trees of her hometown on fire. Sarah watched those ginger and cinnamon colored trees speed by from the back seat of her father's car. She hadn't seen them in years and it filled her heart with a contentment that had been lost to her for years, but now she was back.

Sarah Williams, the graduate. Her father couldn't stop talking about it. As he drove her back to the house she hadn't been to in almost seven years, she couldn't help but feel the tiniest bit apprehensive. Though she couldn't for the life of her figure out why as she watched the town main street come into view, all its tiny, quaint stores bustling along with tourists and townspeople alike.

But why shouldn't she feel strange? She wasn't one of the townspeople anymore, nor was she one of the tourists coming to gawk at the glorious autumn colors. Where did Sarah Williams fit in anymore? It wasn't here and that was all she knew. Of course she didn't fit in or her father wouldn't have sent her away.

After her sophomore year in high school her father had sent her to a 'special school,' as he called it. Basically, it was a mental ward. What peeved Sarah was…she couldn't remember what she had done to warrant being exiled to such a place. She had passed her senior year there with flying colors and had gone on to a prestigious college.

But her father had still not allowed her to come home. It had thoroughly upset her at first. Her father did everything he could to try and make up for it. He had gotten her a nice little apartment just up the street from the school and even made the payments on it. She just had to live there, but why, Sarah's mind yearned as always, was she not wanted here?

Sarah had been a normal student with the normal amount of friends and the normal social life. Truly told, Sarah thought she was quite possibly the most boringly NORMAL person on Earth, but she really didn't have any complaints. Her little apartment had suited her just fine and it had been the perfect place to have fun with the few friends she had made and then to kick them out when she needed serious study time. Which, Sarah thought as she furrowed her brow, was far more often than not.

Sarah heard her fathers' voice from the front seat calling to her.

"Hey Sarah? Any boyfriends that I should know about? I just want to know if I am going to ever get to use my super Dad abilities to scare the shit out of unsuspecting morons." Sarah giggled, but suppressed the deep, hidden sadness of the question. She didn't have a boyfriend. As far as she could remember, she'd NEVER had one.

"Nah dad, don't worry. No annoying leg humpers for you to beat off with a broom just yet." Of course her step-mother had to get in on this one. It wouldn't have been a day with the family if she didn't draw any blood.

"Well dear, I really wish you would get a boyfriend. I'm starting to worry that you might end up a spinster." Sarah just rolled her eyes and glanced out her window. The tree-lined streets were going by in a pleasant blur of amber and grey. She couldn't help but smile as they passed the park where she had always gone to recite her poetry or act out the latest play she was memorizing. Something pulled in her chest as she looked at that park, but what? She had to find out.

"Wait…can we stop here a minute?" Her dad reluctantly pulled the car over. He knew that she was going to start remembering things. He just hoped that it wouldn't all start at once. Truly, he hoped that she wouldn't remember at all. For Christ sake, he had paid those shrinks enough, the least they could have done was a good job.

Sarah got out of the car and started a slightly blurry trip down memory lane. She found the little bridge that arched its way over the brook that ran through the park. Standing there in the center of the bridge she looked down into the soft reflection on the surface of the water. Something flew overhead and startled her enough that she turned her head to glance up at it.

The beautiful white owl swooped through the sky and landed on a post not far from where she was standing. Why was this so familiar? She started to walk towards the owl and was shocked further when the damned thing didn't fly away. It turned its head and looked directly in her eyes.

The mismatched eyes of the bird took the breath out of her body. She knew those eyes, but from where? She saw a flash of a tall, handsome man with a whimsically sneering smile. His hair went anywhere and everywhere it chose to and his eyes…just like those of this regal bird before her. Sarah felt a rush of nausea and then all went black.

It was sometime later when she woke to find herself in her old room. Oh, everything was exactly as she remembered it. She ran over and grabbed up Lancelot, hugging him tightly to her breast. 'Oh what a sight I must be, a full grown, twenty-one year old woman clutching to a teddy bear like a child.'

When she pulled Lancelot back and looked into his shiny, black button eyes she suddenly had another flashback. This one was of a rainy night, she had just come home and found that she had to watch that damned kid again. Lancelot was missing, she was furious. Storming out into the hallway she went straight to her fathers' room, where the little monster was located and at the moment balling for no reason. There was Lancelot on the floor.

"I hate you, I hate YOU!" Sarah's father was at her door.

"Why, exactly do you hate me?" Sarah was knocked back into reality, her father staring at her like she had lost her mind.

"I'm sorry…I was just remembering something I guess." She saw a look of dread cast over his eyes, but it was quickly replaced by the joyous happy mood he seemed to want to keep himself in lately.

"No problem darling! So what do you want to do today?" She looked up at him mischievously, desperately wanting to avoid another of those unsettling flashbacks…if you wanted to call things you couldn't remember flashbacks.

"How about a movie and you buy me dinner?"

"Done!" Her father's smile seemed more relieved than happy, but Sarah was too happy about being home to give it a second thought. "I will be down in fifteen, just give me a minute to freshen up."

"Of course darling." He kissed her cheek and headed out of her room. When she got to the top of the stairs she heard her father and step-mother talking. She could hear her father's exasperated sighs and her step mother trying, in vain, to keep her voice down. Out of instinct, she hid herself at the top of the stairs and stayed quiet.

"You are taking her out tonight!? Don't you think that you should ease her into being back here? Or do you want her to relapse?" Relapse…? What the hell was she talking about? Sarah's father answered.

"I think that keeping her OUT of this house for the night will keep her from doing just that." Another sigh emphasized his words. "She is already starting to remember and I think getting out might keep it from coming back too fast" What were they talking about? Were they talking about the reason they had thrown her in the loony bin?

She decided to play stupid instead of the demanding teen routine she used to use to no avail. Backing up in the hallways a bit, she called out loudly.

"Dad! I'm ready!" Sarah put away her emotions and put her drama skills to work. Lacing her arm through her father's, she plastered a huge smile on her face. "So where are we going?"

When she returned that night from seeing a movie with her father and going out to an over serving Italian restaurant she was beat. It had been a strange night. First her father seemed to be holding back answers from her on simple questions. Secondly, she could swear she had seen that owl a few times during the night. It always seemed to be looking at her.

But when she would ask her father about it, he would always tell her that there was no owl, even when she pointed it out. So after she had seen the owl the third time she stopped asking him about it. Maybe the owl really wasn't there…but that thought unsettled her even more so she simply shut it out.

In truth, Sarah was tired and wanted nothing more than to curl up in a little ball on her bed and sleep away her stuffed tummy, slightly intoxicated head and very frustrated mind.

When she lay down on her bed she looked up into the half canopy covering and was disgusted at the fact that she was sleeping in this bed like a little girl. She should be married or at least in a deeply loving relationship by now. Or not…love optional, she would take just about anything at this point!

Annoyed with herself, she huffed and turned to look at the wall to the right of her. She saw that part of the wall was lighter than the rest of it. There must have been a poster there. Then she looked around the room and thought to herself that it did look emptier than she remembered it to be, but she couldn't tell what was missing. She walked over to her vanity and noticed all that was on it was her makeup.

"There used to be more…" She whispered to no one in particular. There used to be more on her dresser to and the trunk she had was practically empty, but she just KNEW that there was more. She went to her closet and frantically began searching for the missing items, silently wondering if she would recognize them if she saw them.

The closet was a dead end. There was nothing in there that wasn't clothes or shoes that she was sure wouldn't fit her anymore. What in gods name was she missing? Why the flying fuck couldn't she remember anything?

"Do you want to remember?" She heard the silky voice and it sounded like it was coming from the window, but there was nothing and no one out there. "Oh, I'm here…Sarah." The sound of that voice saying her name made shivers run up her spine and her skin go goose pimply.

"Who are you and how can you make me remember?" She ran a hand across her forehead, shocked to find that she was starting to sweat with the frustration. "WHAT can you make me remember?" There was a pause that was almost insufferably long before she heard that sinuous voice once more.

"Just go to the attic Sarah. Once you find your things I am sure you will remember all about your lost items…and me…. Goodbye till then Sarah." It sounded like this voice, whoever it belonged to, combined malice and love in the way he said her name. It was strangely unsettling while at the same time frighteningly thrilling to hear.

With this new boost of confidence given to her by the bodiless voice, she marched up to the attic after everyone was asleep and began rummaging through the boxes. 'Wedding things'…definitely not me, she thought begrudgingly. 'Baby stuff,' since they hadn't kept any of her baby things she figured that it was Toby's things.

Box after box she opened frantically and found nothing. The attic looked like an interior decorators war zone by the time she reached the back. Once there, all she found was a crate and a mass concealed under a tarp-like blanket. She decided to go for the blanket first and threw it off. The dust flew into the air like an evil little army of lung destroyers. She started coughing and hacking, trying to get the demons out of her lungs. She looked at what she had risked her life for and realized that it was just a ratty old arm chair. 'Ugh, this is what I almost died for…fuckin' hell. Well I guess that only leaves that crate over there. Please god let it not be nailed shut' she thought with a silent prayer.

She walked over to the crate and pulled at the top of it…opened like butter! She looked in and the memories washed over her like a tidal wave. Sending Toby away to the Labyrinth, The Labyrinth, the goblins, Hoggle, Ludo, Sir Didymus, Ambrosious, that stupid little peach, the bog…ugh even thinking about it now made the smell come back, and him…the goblin king.

It was his voice she had heard earlier. He was the one who had brought her memories back. What did he want of her? And wait a god damn minute! Didn't she 'destroy' him with that last little line of hers? I guess it was only a temporary thing. Whatever.

She had to find out what Jareth wanted with her and she wanted to know now.


	2. Answers

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own any of these characters…I am merely borrowing from the immense supernova glow of Jim Henson's mind to add a little flicker to my story! (A/N: Thank you to the people that reviewed and gave me the courage to move on with this story! This is going to be a rather short chapter…mostly cause this is just Sarah looking for the answers to her big question of "Why cant I remember?" More adventure and fun stuff to come, but you always have to start with semi-boring crap to get to that! LOL)**

**Disclaimer 2: I refurbished the story…I hope that even those who have read it will re-read it for all the new parts.**

She was sure that sleep would never find her that night. Sarah was nearly out of breath as she took the last of her things from the attic and placed them back in all their rightful places. How could her father do this to her? How could he lock away memories? Or perhaps that was exactly the problem? He was afraid that these things weren't part of her memories, but part of her delusion.

'Oh dad…how could you?' The last thing she pulled out of the box was the music doll. The doll that she had been dressed up like at the Crystal Fae Ball. She cranked the lever a bit and watched as the miniature her twirled to the lilting melody that Jareth had weaved into a song that night.

Suddenly, Sarah returned to that night in her memory. The blurred, masked figures were twirling around in a morbid masquerade. Looking around for Jareth and only catching glimpses of him as he used that annoying Fae ability of popping around the room at will. Oh, but that moment she had seen him and he had taken her up into his arms…she had been ready to surrender.

She was pretty damn sure that she would have given everything up to be with that glimmering, chivalrous version of Jareth. He was charming and debonair, what more could a girl ask for, but sadly, that was not the true Jareth. He was the villain, not the knight in shinning armor come to save her.

The song had stopped. She looked back at the now at that unmoving figurine and she felt the warm tears come running down her cheeks. What the hell was this? Did she miss the Underground? All her friends there? Or…dare she think it…Jareth? She cranked the music doll up again and rested her head down on the table top of her vanity, letting that magical night wash over her again and damning herself for not accepting all that he had to offer.

A hand on her shoulder woke her up.

"Mmmm…Jareth…" She purred. The hand snapped back and she heard the door to her room close. Being too tired to get up and investigate she went back to sleep and her wonderful dream of Jareth. Getting her hands tangled in all that wild hair would be so much fun.

"Sarah…Sarah, darling wake up." Her eyes snapped open. She could feel the slight dribble of drool on her arm where her head had lain. 'Damn saliva…what the hell good is it anyways? All it does is embarrass you when it's most important!'

She turned to meet the gaze of her father and was slightly peeved when she saw the grin on his face. Making sure that her face was the epitome of pissiness, she turned on him. He should know by now that she was NOT a morning person.

"What!?" His grin never faltered.

"You have a red streak across your face. It's very becoming." That sarcastic bastard, but she couldn't help but laugh. She turned to the mirror and saw that she indeed had a red streak from her right temple across her nose and down her left cheek.

"Well, I guess I need a shower huh?"

"Yeah, you're pretty rank."

"Dad!?!" He just laughed and started to head out the door when he noticed a few things in the room that shouldn't have been there. Her father turned back around and glanced over the room. Everything that had been stored away in the attic was back. Somehow she had remembered that things were missing and she had found everything and put it back.

"Sarah…?"

"Yes Dad?"

"Where did you find all your things?"

"The attic, where you shoved them." It was said so nonchalant, but he knew the venom that was insinuated in those words. He tried to walk up to her and explain.

"Sarah, I…" A slender hand went up to signal him to stop talking.

"I really don't want to talk about this right now dad. Right now all I want to do is take a shower and try to calm myself down and wake up a little. As you can imagine I didn't get much sleep last night." His head just hung low and defeated. He knew he had no chance of trying to explain himself to Sarah.

"Ok, I will be downstairs when you are ready to talk." She nodded and he left the room. Down to the breakfast that she could smell. Down to that bacon and eggs way of life. Her life wasn't going to be that simple. It wasn't going to be bacon and eggs. The way she was feeling right now it was more along the lines of liver and onions.

She took her shower and then headed down herself. The bacon and eggs were cold, of course, but Toby was sitting there waiting for her. He wasn't quite as annoying these days.

"Hello Sawah." Toby still couldn't get his r's down. She walked over to the six year old and ruffled his dirty blonde hair, making a mental note to buy a present for his rapidly approaching birthday.

"Hello there Toby. How are you doing this morning?" His blue eyes twinkled with delight at her being home. He had always hated it when they had to leave her there at her apartment, always wanting to stay with her.

"I'm doin' pwetty good Sawah. How have you been?"

"I have been doing pretty good myself little one, but I have had some problems with my memory lately. Some of it seems to have been erased." His little face twisted up in confusion.

"How could it be ewased? You can't take an ewaseah to a bwain…can you?" He looked terrified at the thought.

"Oh no, no Toby. No erasers. There were just people that made me forget a few things that I didn't want to." His head titled with the need for knowledge.

"Like what Sawah?" She leaned in closer to Toby.

"Toby, do you remember the Goblin King? Do you remember being in his castle with all the goblins and I was trying to find you?" His eyes filled with terror.

"They awen't comin' back are they!?! I don't wanna go back thewe. It wasn't a fun place." Sarah was joyous with the news. She thought for sure he was too young to remember that, but perhaps something as momentous as being in the Underground couldn't simply be forgotten. That brought a twinge of remorse to her already bruised heart…she had. She had forgotten. Forgotten it all, along with her friends.

"No Toby they won't come back for you. I just wanted verification that I wasn't crazy." He laughed.

"You awen't cwazy!" She didn't have time to continue the conversation with her little brother cause her father walked into the kitchen with 'evil bitch' in tow. She groaned and rolled her eyes, mentally preparing herself for the moronic onslaught that was about to be dished out on her.

"So I guess it's not going to be when I'm ready?" It was her step-mother's turn to scoff and roll her eyes at Sarah from above her long, narrow nose. She always managed to look like a retarded bird of some sort when she did that. Her father came and sat down by her.

"I am sorry dear, but these things need to be said and Claire--I, want to get it out of the way." So this was step-mother dearest's idea? Surprise, surprise.

"Ok, I have one question and one question only. It's really simple so it won't be too hard for you." She directed that last part at the witch bitch to the left of her father. "Why the HELL did you send me to that psyche ward of a high school?" Her step- mother took her chance to answer.

"Because you were spouting off idiocy about some mythical place called the Underground and talking about how you fought a Goblin King and made friends with a dwarf and a giant monster with horns! What did you expect us to do? We couldn't very well keep you around to scare off our friends!" Sarah eyed her coldly.

"You mean YOUR friends!? You MADE dad send me to that place didn't you?" Her smug smirk and upturned chin was all she needed as a reply. Sarah burst out of her seat and sent a blazing open palm right against her step-mother's cheek. There was a gasp and the sound of her father calling her, but she was storming to her room.

She ran in and slammed the door shut, locking it. Then she threw herself on the bed and covered her head with the nearest pillow. Then she shot up.

"Woah…déjà vu." There was pounding on her door. It was her father and he sounded furious.

"Sarah Williams! You open this door right now!"

"NO!"

"I can't believe you hit Claire like that!" Disbelief covered her face…well damn, some things never changed.

"Wow, you really care about ME! You could care less about sending your child away for almost seven years, but a little slap to the Bitch Whore from Hell and your fucking panties are in a twist!" The pounding stopped.

"Sarah…" He sounded exasperated. That just made her snap even more.

"Don't worry, you won't have to worry about me anymore!" She turned to the mirror on her vanity and said the words that could either doom her to a fate she didn't even want to think of or the only place where she would ever truly be free.

"I wish…" The pounding started on her door again at the sound of those words.

"Sarah, don't do this! You know that was all a dream! It was a delusion created by you when you were a child!" Her focus went back to the mirror.

"I wish…"

"SARAH!"

"I wish the goblins would come and take me away…" She looked back at the door one last time. One last look at her life here in the Aboveground. "Right now."

Her window was thrown open and the owl swooped in. The curtains hid it for a moment and when they fell back there he was. It was Jareth. He looked exactly the same. He was wearing his regal armored formal ware. Just like that first night they had met.

She walked up to him and looked up into his mismatched eyes and he smiled. She couldn't tell if it was sinister or sincere. Sarah could only guess that was a perk of being the Goblin King, keeping people on their toes.

"Hello Sarah."

**(A/N: Thank you to those who have begun reading my story. I truly hope that you like it and want to continue with it. I love being on favorites lists. LOL. But you know what I love the most? REVIEWS! I love hearing what people think about the story! So go for it…you know you wanna…review::HINTHINT:: Reviews get me writing faster…cause I feel I have a story that people actually want to read so I write faster!)**


	3. Arrival at the Goblin City

**Disclaimer: I know that I do not own these characters and I am not disillusioned enough to believe otherwise. I borrow and hope you enjoy. So, now on to the story that I have made up. SOOOOOOOO sorry that it has taken me so long to update! I promise to write more often! It's just that Pure Blood has been pouring in my mind and I couldn't think of anything else, but this story finally came more to me and demanded attention! Last thing and then I will get to the story! I do not own the rights to any songs that Sarah might think of or sing either.**

Her jaw dropped as she stared up into his eyes. He was just the same as she remembered and yet completely different. She couldn't explain the difference. Was he colder? Warmer? There was absolutely no emotion coming from the man standing in front of her, but he had that same old crooked grin that seemed permanently a part of his face.

He was wearing the same outfit he had when he had first appeared to her. It was what she assumed to be his formal armor. The black shining cape was glittering in the dim light of her darkened room. His chest plate armor was likened to dragon scales in its overlapping strength. The high, up turned collar of the cape went up and curved behind him. He even had it perfectly down to still having those black gloves covering his elegant hands.

She shivered looking at him. Her breathing was deep and uneven and it seemed that was just the way he wanted it. Showing his first bit of emotion since he appeared he smirked deeper and started walking around her room. She was transfixed and simply watched him as he looked over her things. Finally she heard his voice, that voice she had craved since she banished him, even though she couldn't remember it.

"So Sarah, what is the meaning of this?" His mismatched eyes shot to hers and suddenly she couldn't find her voice. She had never been putty to him, she had been strong. Now wasn't a time to try anything different. Straightening her back she put on an air of superiority.

"I called you, isn't that obvious?" Jareth walked over to her and trailed a regal finger down her trembling cheek that betrayed her true feelings.

"Still so juvenile are we Sarah? You try to put on an act, but your body betrays you." His face was so near that she could feel and smell his warm, sweet breath on her neck. He was circling her like a predator and she couldn't have been more his willing prey. "You act so young for one so grown." She felt her defenses fall and knew that this could either be her undoing or her triumph.

"I didn't know what else to do." She felt so weak and helpless saying that, but Jareth came around in front of her and stared down at her as if thinking her over again. His blue/brown stare was boring into her very soul.

"Why did you call Sarah? You denied everything I offered you a long time ago." He sounded regretful and annoyed all at the same time so she didn't know which one he actually felt.

"Because I wanted to be in the Underground. I feel like I belong there. This place is so cruel." He gave that condescending short laugh and circled around behind her again. Leaning in behind her he spoke quietly to her.

"You still don't have a very good basis for comparison now do you Sarah?" He had said this to her in the Labyrinth. Things were still coming back to her slowly.

"I have a much better basis for comparison Jareth." She sensed him tense and shiver. "What was that for?" She turned to face him, but he was no longer there. She was scared out of her mind that he had left her there to suffer the fate of her father and Claire. What would they do to her? She felt a hand on her shoulder and jumped.

"Jumpy Sarah?" It was him. He had used that damned Fae ability of teleporting. She hated that! He laughed at the fury and fright in her eyes. "Did you think I had left you?" Nodding meekly she sighed deeply, relieved. "Oh no, I won't leave you as you left me. I have you now and I have no intentions of letting you go." The way he said it made it sound like it could be either a promise or a threat.

"Before we go…What made you shiver a moment ago?" He wrapped his arms around her nonchalantly. It wasn't exactly a loving embrace, only for the necessity of teleporting them to his world. She felt him inhale and exhale severely.

"That was the first time I had ever heard you say my name." With that they were sent to his world. They didn't show up on that lone hill over looking the labyrinth this time. This time she was taken right to the mighty gates of the goblin castle. "It's nice to finally be home." Her brows furrowed at the comment.

"What do you mean?" They passed through the gates that seemed much nicer since the last time she was here. In fact, she looked behind her at the little town she had Bluto assault with boulders and it was _much_ nicer. No longer was there a dusty haze in the air. It seemed clear and clean. What was all this about? She turned back to Jareth…it was strange thinking of him with his name instead of the Goblin King and much shorter to say.

"This is the first time I have seen this place since you banished me into the Darkness." Sarah stopped dead.

"What do you mean?" The Goblin King turned to face her, she thought of him that way because he seemed more his old self in that one fluid motion of whipping around on her.

"I mean that when you discarded all that I offered you all those years ago, you exiled me to a world that Fae and God alike fear."

"Where did I send you?" Sarah asked timidly. The fire in those mismatched eyes was enough to make her feel like she had just been marked for revenge.

"You sent me to The Darkness." She didn't understand what this was, but was terribly afraid to ask him anymore about it. Perhaps it might come up later. He whisked his cape back and she watched it billow away as he turned around quickly to make his way into his castle. Sarah followed a few paces behind him, too afraid of the wrath she had seen in his eyes. When they reached the gates of the castle there was a great uprising as the goblins noticed their master and lord returning.

"Open the gates! The King is back!" A little goblin that was playing guard up in a tower shouted to the gate keepers. And that was all she heard the whole time as they entered and Jareth made his way to the throne room.

Sarah was in awe of her surroundings. It hadn't been this beautiful and striking when she had first made her way here. No longer did it look drab and dank. She thought back to how it used to look. Partially crumbling towers had been slowly making their way to deterioration. The stones had been covered in moss and nasty mildew that had given them a slimy green color.

She hadn't seen much of the castle the first time she had been here because, well, she had been a little preoccupied on here first trip, but she did remember the things she had seen. The grand staircase in the foyer of the castle used to be broken and the right side of it used to be missing all the steps from the middle of it to the floor. As she looked at it now she saw that it was all beautiful black marble with flecks of gold and silver in it. The staircases were perfectly curved up the sides of the walls and there was a plush red runner going down each.

She looked up and gasped at the spectacle above her. There was a five tier grand chandelier hanging in the middle of the room and it was lit with thousands of pearl white candles. Surely that hadn't been here the first time she had come through. She was staring at the chandelier so intently that she didn't notice Jareth stop and she bumped right into his back. He turned around to steady her with a smart ass little smirk on his face.

"Have trouble walking as well?" She glared at him, not knowing where the courage to do so came from.

"I was looking around and was just shocked at how much it has changed. I wasn't paying attention to you…_your highness._" Where she had expected to be slapped and thrown in an oubliette for her sharp tongue she only heard a soft laughter. He found her amusing did he? "I didn't wish myself here to be made fun of." His laughter stopped and he seemingly flew over to her he moved so fast.

"I do not really care why you did or did not wish yourself here. As you can imagine I am not entirely the same man you encountered before Sarah. You banished me to a place that makes you think very hard about your decisions and I have done a lot of thinking about you." She shivered at the venom in his voice and jerked back when his hand came up to her face. Jareth's hand merely grazed her cheek and rested under her chin. "You never have to shirk away from me Sarah." His voice was surprisingly soft and caring now. He was getting very confusing.

"I don't know what to think about you. You contradict yourself in so many ways. You have me intrigued one minute and terrified the next." He smiled this time, not a smirk, but his whole mouth got into it. It was a beautiful sight. Throwing his arm around her shoulder, he led her through the foyer into a room that was even more spectacular. Jareth pulled her close as his mouth grazed her ear to whisper into it.

"This is the Grand Throne Room. There is a smaller one that is circular and simple stone. That one is used for more of a personal space with friends. It is where I kept your brother." She felt like him, but was too enthralled by her surroundings to try anything drastic at the moment.

"What is this one used for?" All around her was glittering gold and marble. It was a marvel to behold. The flooring was swirling white and black marble with a strange gold marble square section in the middle. She had never seen marble like that and was mesmerized by it. When she looked up at the ceiling she saw three grand chandeliers, but they weren't as impressive as the five tiered one in the foyer. These were only three tiers and were about half the size of the other.

The two thrones at the front of the room were giant and looked to be made of pure gold. The high arched back chairs curved into elaborate Celtic knot designs through the back. The arms of the thrones were eagle claws and the legs were lions back legs. So the thrones themselves were representations of griffins. This whole room was just…overly royal. When she looked over at him, Jareth looked extremely amused at her astonishment of the castle.

"This room is used for entertaining the Faeries, Gods and Goddesses that come to visit and either do business or enjoy merriment." Her eyes went wide.

"Gods and Goddesses? You mean mythology is real? Like Zeus, Hera and all those guys?" Jareth smiled and laughed a bit at her ignorance.

"No dear Sarah. I do not mean Zeus, Hera and all those guys as you so eloquently put it." She glared at him. She hated people making fun of her. "Oh calm down. I want to explain things to you for you need to know, this is your world now and you must know how it works." Hands on her hips, she looked up at him belligerently.

"Then teach me Obi-wan." His brow furrowed as he didn't understand her reference. "All I mean is teach me."

"Fine, I did not mean Greek mythology…that stuff is a lot of rubbish. I am talking about Celtic mythology. I am talking Morrigan, Danu, Dagda, Brigit, Medb. They are all real…as real as you and me." She knew that she must have looked like an eager child learning her favorite subject in school, but she didn't care. Her ardor did receive a soft grin from Jareth though. "You will learn more and more as time goes on. For now I want to know what has happened here." She looked up at him, amazed.

"You mean…?"

"Yes Sarah, I am just as surprised as you are at the transformation of the Goblin City and my castle. I want to know what has happened in my…absence." Sarah grabbed his sleeve.

"Ok, I want to finish this now. If you are mad at me for not taking what you offered then lets get this over with now." Jareth looked into her eyes and she felt his pain, his confusion.

"I want to hate you and love you all at once Sarah. We will have this discussion, but not now, not here." Knowing it was the better choice, she let it go and followed Jareth as he was greeted by more of his goblins. They looked as ugly as ever, but now they looked clean and groomed. It seemed as if they cared what they looked like now and Sarah was just as curious as their king was.

"Sire! You have returned." She watched Jareth look down at the Goblin who was tall for its breed, but still shorter than even Sarah. He came up to her chest and if she thought that goblins might like pretty human girls she might have been a little worried about him staring at her breasts.

"Yes, Blix…I am back." Blix looked up at Sarah and his ugly, disfigured jaw dropped.

"You brought _her_!" He didn't say it in disgust or anger as she might have thought he would have. The tone in which he said it was actually more reverential.

"The goblins remember Sarah do they?" The horrid little head nodded rapidly and his eyes were locked on Sarah.

"Oh yes we do! She left an impression on us that won't soon be forgotten! Plus, we have been told that she would return with you. We just had to make everything pretty for her and she would want to come back." Jareth looked disturbed. Sarah was shocked, how could they know that she would come back?

"Who told you all those things Blix?" The goblin looked down at the ground in a motion that showed he was reluctant to tell. The Goblin King lifted Blix's head. "Tell me Blix."

"Oh sire! It was Her Greatness! She graced us with her presence and told us all these things! She told us that if everything was beautiful and clean here that you would return with Sarah and…" He drifted off and wouldn't continue. Sarah knelt down in front of the goblin and his face went pale…for a goblin anyways. He grabbed at her arms and tried to get her to stand back up. "Please miss stand up! You shouldn't look up at a Goblin! We should look up at you!"

"I'm sorry." She stood up since she seemed to have frightened him deeply. Looking over at Jareth, she searched his face for an answer in his eyes.

"They must think very highly of you to treat you in this regard. The only people that get such honor from goblins are the Fae, Gods and Goddesses." Her eyes went wide as she looked down at the goblin who seemed to cower in front of her. She placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I am so sorry to have upset you. I only wanted to ask what the rest of the story was. He would bring me back and…?" The goblin looked ever more uncomfortable, if that was possible.

"I really can't tell you. I have told you more than I was supposed to already, but I can take you to Her Greatness." Jareth started at the remark.

"She is still here?"

"Yes my lord." Jareth gave a little hand gesture that she was sure meant 'get on with it.' The goblin led them through the Grand Throne Room and into the hallway. It was the same polished grey stone walls and the red runner through the hall was the same as on the stairs in the foyer. It was a short walk and a brief climb up one flight of stairs that took them to great double doors. Blix bowed to them and then opened the doors.

This was a bedroom as Sarah could see and it was all decorated in deep, rich reds. The four poster bed was made from dark mahogany wood and draped with thick red velvet material. It was then that Sarah noticed a beautiful woman draped on a plush red couch in the middle of the room.

She stood and her medieval style dress flowed around her. The luxuriant crimson color of her dress made the paleness of her skin seem a bright light in a dark room. She had emerald green eyes and fire red hair. When Sarah looked at the dress closely she noticed that the bodice was covered in elaborate Celtic knots and designs. She was, in a word, breathtaking.

Jareth must have felt the same way, because when she looked over at him he looked like he would drop to the ground and start worshipping her any minute. It was then that she finally heard the woman's voice. It was a beautiful lilting voice, her Irish accent thick and beautiful.

"Jareth my darling, it has been so long." She walked over to Jareth and hugged him tightly. He returned the hug and Sarah couldn't help but feel a tug of jealously towards the gorgeous woman caught up in his arms.

The next comment out of Jareth's mouth however would make her feel as if that moment of jealously was the stupidest thing she ever could have thought. Jareth pulled the woman back and kissed her lightly on both rosy, freckled cheeks.

"Hello mother."

**(A/N: I know this took a long time for me to do, but I promise that I will write this story more regularly! Hope you all enjoyed this chapter and the next will be up soon!)**


	4. Jareth's Mother & A Makeover

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. I am simply borrowing their likeness and their attitudes to add flavor to my story in a feeble attempt to make an interesting plot. Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it!**

The arrival of his mother was even more shocking than the castles transformation into splendor. He hadn't seen her in decades. Now here she stood before him in her gorgeous ensemble and was hugging him. That was the weirdest thing of all, she didn't hug him unless she was sorry for something or she wanted something from him. He was going to find out. Pulling her back from the hug he looked into her eyes, she was doing her best to hide her emotions and it was working.

"Why are you here mother and why did you tell those things to the goblins? So you could have a nicer place to stay while I was…" He looked over at Sarah with another look that he was sure would confuse her more. That's the way he wanted her to fell because that was the way he felt. "…while I was away?" Sarah dropped her head in shame.

Good, she should feel bad for what she put him through, but another part of him wanted to reach out and comfort her; telling her everything would be alright. He was getting very tired of his conflicting emotions. He needed to figure out what he was going to do with her and he needed to do it soon. A warm hand on his cheek brought his face around from Sarah to focus on his mother.

"My son, you look more wounded and confused then I have ever seen you before. I don't think I have seen more emotions flash over someone's face in ten seconds than I just saw on yours. What ails you my dear?" One more look over at Sarah was all that his mother needed as an answer. "Ah, so this is the girl who sent my boy to The Darkness?" He watched as his mother walked over to Sarah and started circling her, inspecting her. Sarah's hazel eyes followed every move that his mother made. She was also taking the older woman in. "She's not much now is she Jareth? I do not see why you feel for her instead of some perfectly willing and beautiful Fae."

"Mother…" But Sarah's tongue was a lightning fast and cocky as ever and her eyes would have burned holes into his mother if they had the power.

"Who are you to judge me? You don't even know me. All you have done is circled me and you assume that I am a worthless heap of flesh because what…I'm human?" His mother looked shocked and appalled for a moment, but slowly, a smile crept over her sculpted face.

"Ah, I see now why you like her Jareth. She is strong and stubborn, just like you." Again she circled Sarah, this time with a more approving eye. "Yes, I guess I didn't want to see beauty there before, but it is there, if crude." Sarah opened her mouth to go off at what she thought an insult, but his mother cut her off. "Oh I don't mean that as an insult darling, when Fae talk we are very blunt." She looked over at him and chuckled a bit. "If you have to stay here I suggest you get used to it." He was stunned to see a knowing smile creep over Sarah's face.

"Yes, I know." His mother laughed again and then continued her inspection of the girl that he both loved and despised.

"Nice hair, if not a few split ends, but that can be dealt with and cared for. Beautiful skin, creamy and smooth. I have to say that there isn't anything to change about that." Sarah smiled at the compliment. "Big, beautiful eyes, if not a bit of a dirty color." The smile on her face melted as one crept on Jareth's. He was loving this. "Overall body tone and physic is good. I do say, Jareth, for a mortal, she is exquisite." He gave his mother a sneering grin and then went to Sarah.

"Yes, I know, but sometimes the most exquisite and beautiful things can hurt and damage a man." Sarah stood with her eyes downcast again, but Jareth lifted her chin so their eyes met again. "What did I tell you about lowering your eyes to me?" When his finger left her chin she was still looking up at him. "Better." He heard a cough behind him, his mother wanted his attention. He turned around and faced her, raising a brow inquisitively.

"I confess that I do have an alternate agenda being here." Jareth sat down in one of his mothers' plush red lounge chairs. Draping a leg over one of the arms of the chair, he looked back at his mother.

"Shocking." He looked over at Sarah who seemed unsure of what to do with herself. "Sarah…sit somewhere." He said it more as an offer than a demand. She did and she sat down on the couch. Feeling better now that Sarah was settled and he wasn't thinking about her anymore, he turned back to his mother. "So what is this alternate agenda?" She sat down next to Sarah on the couch.

Seeing his mother sitting next to Sarah showed him just how out of place his beautiful human was here in the Underground. His mother was a classic Fae beauty and Sarah, though gorgeous on human standards, really couldn't match that magical beauty. He could see Sarah fidgeting next to the Fae woman.

"What is the matter Sarah?" She looked at him like she was unwilling to tell her problem. She actually looked nervous…this wasn't right for her and he wouldn't have her act this way. "Snap out of that attitude Sarah. You are the champion of the labyrinth. I will not allow you to be nervous around me." Now she looked ready to beat him, which was better. His mother was glancing back and forth between the two bemusedly. "What is it now mother?"

"You care so much for her and she for you. Just neither of you knows it yet. Once you can both accept that you will get along much better." Sarah no longer looked very nervous around the woman, but extremely curious.

"What should I call you ma'am? Or am I just to call you Jareth's mother forever?" His mother laughed and placed a slender, graceful hand on Sarah's smooth face.

"You don't have forever my dear…not yet anyways. As far as to what you may call me, for now you may call me Maesia." Sarah looked back to Jareth and then sat back, seemingly awaiting his mother's explanation of what was going on in the Underground.

"Ok then Maesia, please tell us what the hell happened here. I, for one, am shocked at the changes down here."

"I know, it has been a magnificent transformation." Jareth was tired of all the stalling.

"Will you just out with it?" His Fae mother shifted uncomfortably on the couch, looking much like Sarah a few moments ago.

"I would actually like to request that Sarah leave. What I have to say is not for her ears and she might want to get herself dressed accordingly anyways." His mother snapped her fingers and two stunning Fae women came in. "Erina and Jeaule will see to all of your needs Sarah." Turning from Sarah his mother addressed the two women at the door who had been eyeing him like a piece of meat…he hated that. "I want her washed and her hair done. She is to look as perfect as possible for her…presentation." Jareth didn't like the way his mother had paused.

The two ladies jumped into action over Sarah. Erina was taller than his mother, but still had a graceful elegance that seemed to ooze from her very pores. She was ebony haired and blue eyed, her milk white skin standing out in stark contrast to her raven hair. He did like the soft, yet fake, blush that came to her cheeks when she looked at him.

Jeaule was Erina's complete opposite with almost silver hair and chocolate brown eyes. The only thing that they matched in was their impressive height. The two of them rushed about his flustered human and bustled her out of the room. Hopefully they would make her even more unbelievably striking than she already was with their Fae magic. He turned back to his mother who had stood and was now pacing in front of the small round table to his left.

"Now we are alone. Tell me all that has happened in my absence and all that is to take place." She seemed a bit shocked at his last statement, but shrugged it off for he had always seemed to know when something was going to happen.

"Ok. Where to begin?"

"Try the beginning."

"Oh Jareth, must you always be so insolent?"

"Yes, now continue." His mother sighed, but did as he said.

"When Sarah beat your labyrinth and sent you to the Darkness the great council convened." His brows rose.

"So she is to be punished?" He thought about it for a moment and smirked, this was perfect. She would be punished and it wouldn't be his doing, which killed two birds with one stone for him since he knew he would never be able to hurt her.

"Yes, but I know not how. There is to be another meeting of the council today, but this time it won't be a meeting…"

"It will be a trial." Jareth finished for her. He got up and walked over to the window. It overlooked the whole of his kingdom and he frowned for it wasn't the kingdom he had left. "I accept the fact that Sarah must stand before the trial for there is nothing I could do about it even if I was opposed. I do say, I was thinking on how to punish her myself. This was a merry coincidence, but my worry at the moment is what has happened to my kingdom. Why the change?" Again, his mother sat on the luxurious crimson sofa and looked up at him.

"When you disappeared Danu called me to her." His spun from the window to stare at his mother in disbelief.

"Danu called for you? But she hasn't called for the presence of a Fae in hundreds of years."

"I know that as well as you do, but it happened and if you want to know what was said you will remain quiet." He nodded only because he was too interested to hear why the Mother Goddess had called his mother to her presence. "As you know the Mother Goddess doesn't feel there is much use for the Fae and doesn't really think them needed except to add beauty to the underworld.

"She told me that my line, as one of the last honorable noble Fae lines, would be the only one that could stop Medb." She must have known that he couldn't keep quiet at that remark because she sat demurely awaiting him to say something.

"What is Medb doing that we have to stop and how the hell does Danu expect _you_ to…" The look on his mother's face was all he needed to know that it wasn't going to be her. "It's going to be me isn't it?" She nodded gravely.

"Not just you though, my love."

"Who else?"

"Your fiery human." He dropped into his chair.

"Sarah? But she is just a human…how could she stand against Medb?" She sighed and walked over to him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"You will be facing Medb, but she will be saving you AND facing Medb. She has a far greater task on her shoulders and it's up to you to make sure that she gets out of it alive."

"Why?"

"Because…oh bother, I can't tell you, if I did the gods would surely banish _me_ to the Darkness." His mind was swirling with all the information she had thrust at him so rashly, but that was his mother's way, get it all out and be done with it. She had no use for dilly dally. How was he going to face Medb and why? What would happen to Sarah when she faced her and how and why was she supposed to save him? Lost in his silent thoughts he didn't hear the first time his mother coughed to get his attention, but he did feel the gentle slap to his face.

"What was that for?"

"I have more to tell you."

"Oh, well then get on with it; I have a great many things to think about."

"First off, I don't know when this meeting with Medb is to take place and I don't know the reason for it or the outcome." He nodded at her explanation and waited for her to continue. "Now I am sure you want to know the reason for your castles restoration?"

"That would be nice." He said sardonically as he kicked a leg up and over the arm of the chair again. She made a perturbed face at him, but continued undaunted.

"I told the goblins that it would bring you back. That once the castle was to Sarah's liking that she would bring you back to the castle and everything would be a happy fairy tale ending. Really I just knew that she would be coming back and I wanted it to look nice for her. The fairy tale ending is up to you."

"So what am I supposed to do mother?" She walked over and placed a hand on his forearm.

"Accept Sarah's punishment and help her embrace it. You know what it will probably be."

"It will probably be the training course." The soft nod of his mother's head told him that he was right. He was happy that she was going to be punished, but if this was indeed her punishment then he wouldn't have to be the one doing the punishing. That would be the perfect thing for him because he knew that deep in his heart he wouldn't have the courage or the heart to hurt her. He only wanted to see her wallowing in anguish for a while. "I guess I just have to wait and see."

**Whirling** her around and about, Jeaule and Erina started preparing her for whatever it was that she was supposed to look fabulous for. Her clothes were stripped from her body and she was dunked in a tub of hot water before she could formulate a thought on being naked. The warm water felt good on her chilled flesh. It had been so cold outside the castle and she had picked up a slight chill from it, but now her body was immersed in near scorching water and she actually felt a lot better.

She finally looked up at the women who were now cleansing her whole body. Yesterday she would have thought such a thing absurd or even unsettling, but strangely she felt relaxed and calmed. The gentle scrubbing motions they made on her skin made her feel heavenly and she leaned back in the fragrant bubbles to unwind.

"What is this scent?" Sarah asked the woman she had learned to be Jeaule. That silvery cascade of hair shifted and she saw the dark complexion of the woman sitting next to the tub who was scrubbing her legs. Her tan was stunning and Sarah found herself slightly sidetracked thinking where she got it from when her sister was so pale.

"It is vanilla and lavender." Her voice was like a crystal chime to Sarah's ears. She had that same lilting Irish accent that Erina and Maesia had.

"Hmmm…never would have thought to mix those two. I always had strawberries and cream."

"Would you prefer that scent for your baths from now on?" Sarah was startled.

"Do you mean this is to be common place? You are going to bathe me all the time?" The pale woman looked slightly startled by her outburst.

"Only if you wish it madam." Sarah was aghast, what was she supposed to say to these women? Would it be rude to them to say that she would rather bathe herself? Too bad if it was.

"Well, I guess on special occasions you could, but other than that I would prefer to bathe myself." They looked back and forth at each other as if trying to contemplate what she was saying. Erina spoke up again; it seemed that she was the voice of the two, unless Jeaule was addressed personally.

"We are your lady's in waiting. Whenever you need something you call for us."

"Did you say lady's in waiting?" The two nodded their confirmation. "Isn't that something that is a reserved right for a queen?" Again they looked back and forth to each other for an answer.

"We are only doing what we were told madam."

"What told you to?"

"Maesia." Why was Jareth's mother being so good to her? She had banished her son to oblivion for years! "If you don't mind madam we need to get you out of the tub and get you ready for the trial." Sarah's back jerked straight.

"Trial?"

"Your trial, for banishing King Jareth to the Darkness." Her heart felt like it was going to beat itself out of her chest and her head felt ready to explode.

"What is the purpose of the trial?"

"To determine your punishment." Erina was so non-chalant about it. It really was unnerving.

"What could happen to me?"

"Most likely you will be sentenced to training." That word sounded scary.

"Training?" They dried her off and had her in the giant closet. There were hundreds, no thousands of dresses here and from the way they were eyeing her and the dresses one after the other, it seemed as if they were all hers. The two finally picked out a blood red dress.

"Yes, training. It's not that bad…most of us went through it. If you are lucky you will find yourself in the hands of a good and kind master. If not then you will be passed around till they find a master that can control you the best." What the hell was she going on about? "Please don't ask anymore questions as we are not at liberty to talk to you about it anymore. Just let us prepare you." She nodded and let them go to work.

The dress they had picked had a tight bodice that lifted her ample bosom to where she felt like it was going to fall out of the dress top, but it wouldn't. The princess cut bodice went to the normal point at the bottom center, but the skirt wasn't poofy like her ball gown. It had just the right amount of flare to it. It seemed to naturally glide off her hips and at an angle down to the floor. The bodice and hem of the dress had more gorgeous Celtic designs in it and as she sat at the vanity while her hair was being done, she admired the handy work.

Once her hair was done she saw that they had swept it up in a silver clip on one side and the other was pinned back slightly. Her hair was gliding down her back in a way she had never been able to make it do before and she was in awe. She didn't even look like herself and she didn't even have makeup on.

As she looked around she took time to see what her room looked like since she was going to be living here now. Besides the girls were bringing out the makeup case and she was going to be here a while. Shockingly, they started on her hands and feet…it seemed she was getting a full spa treatment today and her manicure and pedicure had started.

Her room wasn't the jolt of red that Maesia's room was. Sarah's room was unbelievably earth toned and gorgeous. She too had a four poster bed, but this one was unlike anything she had ever seen before in her life. Each post looked like a tree truck and might possibly have been made straight from tree trunks. They curved and bowed naturally up into the dark green material draping over the tops and down the corners.

'So it's supposed to look like a tree…beautiful.' The headboard was immaculate as well. It was solid wood and had a scene carved into it. The detail was magnificent. It showed a man fallen at the feet of a striking woman; he looked broken. The woman seemed to be laughing at him, but she had a crown in her hand and from the way the picture was carved it looked like she was bending to place it on his head. All around the people of the court seemed to be laughing and pointing and the poor man, but one wasn't. The one not laughing seemed to actually be running towards the man…trying to save him?

She shook her head she didn't know what the carving meant, but it was beautiful and she would love to sleep under it every night. She felt the girls moving away from her feet and over to the vanity desk again. When she looked over she saw that they now had the make up out and she was subjugated to their whim.

It seemed an eternity before they backed off and allowed her to look at herself in the mirror, but finally they did. When she looked at herself she did a double take for the woman looking out at her was surely not her. This woman looked elegant and graceful…this woman looked like a queen.

Her eyes seemed bigger from the earth tone browns with a touch of green at the ends. It really made her hazel eyes seem beautiful and not dirty as Maesia had called them. Her lips were plump and perfect with the gloss they had put on it. When she looked close she could also tell that the gloss had a slight pinkish tint to it. The blush was perfect, not overdone like she always did. That stuff was just so friggin' hard to do.

"You two are _always_ doing my makeup!" They curtseyed before her and she could see the proud smiles on their faces.

"Thank you, madam." They said in unison. She stood up and walked over to them, placing on hand on either beautiful, curving shoulders.

"First thing, if we are going to be around each other a lot then I want you two to never call me madam again. My name is Sarah and I wish you to call me by my name." They looked confused and it seemed that neither knew what to say to such a request.

"As you wish mad…Sarah." They both smiled as they lowered their guards finally.

"See, that was better wasn't it? We will be friends not mistress and servants. I couldn't do that." In a rare moment since she had met them, Jeaule took her hand and spoke, her voice sounded sad.

"Oh m…Sarah, sorry that will take getting used to. What I was going to say was, I hope that your punishment isn't horrible because you are such a nice person, but I suppose it will because you banished the king to the Darkness. No one had done that in hundreds of years." Again, Sarah felt that sickness traveling up her spine and through her stomach to her head. She felt a nice trip to the porcelain waste bin wouldn't be far off unless she could calm her nerves.

"So when is this trial?"

"Now."

**(A/N: I know that I left you hanging! Sorry, but I thought it a good place to stop. Hope you like it all so far. And SORRY that it took way long to update! I promise to get better at that!)**


	5. The Trial

**Disclaimer: I do not in any way own any of the characters that you recognize from the movie. Other than those characters the rest are mine. I hope you all enjoy this chapter! I love this story so much from the simple fact that more people are reading this story than my other ones. LOL. I really, really will try to start writing more often…I just feel like I have taken so long to write stuff and I feel bad. **

**Sarah** was lead down the halls by her two ladies in waiting. Her breathing was deep and heavy. She couldn't have been more frightened if she had been running the Labyrinth again. At least with the Labyrinth she would know what was coming, this trial could sentence her to anything. Jeaule and Erina stopped by a pair of giant golden double doors. Erina turned to her and gave her a big hug.

"Good luck Sarah." She hugged her new found friends and headed into the imposing room. The ceiling was easily twenty feet tall and the walls looked like they might have been made from solid ivory if she hadn't known better. There were black onyx carvings placed in recessed walls to her left and right. They seemed to be depictions of justice, if this was a courtroom it seemed it would be fitting.

When she looked upwards she nearly stopped walking all together just to take a moment to observe the brilliance of the collaged mural on the ceiling. It was all manner of mythical creatures, but she had learned that they might not be all that mythical after all. There were fauns and nymphs running merrily about in open fields next to unicorns and chimeras. It was an amazing work of art that she swore to come back and study some other day. That was, if she had another day after this trial.

Sarah finally took the time to look around her at all the people surrounding either side. It seemed that this was to be as public and high profile as a Michael Jackson trial. She stopped…well that was a nice compliment to give yourself.

'Yeah I am on the level of a child molester…a 'supposed' child molester, whatever.' Sarah personally could care less about that trial because she didn't have a true view on it one way or the other and even if she did…the one happening in about ten seconds was a little more important to her.

Before her was a half moon table, it reminded her of the how the Supreme Court of the United States was set up. Though, there seemed to be only three people in this high court. One was a somewhat dowdy older looking woman, older than Maesia for sure. She had the fiery red hair, but so did everyone else around here it seemed. Her eyes were a cool ocean blue though and her skin looked like the color of freshly poured cream.

The other two were a man and woman to either side of the woman with the cream complexion. The woman had that same fire like hair, but her eyes were a deep brown, almost black and her face seemed to be permanently flushed a deep rose color. Her face was full, but she was by no means chubby. She seemed almost fierce in her manner, like a general or something.

The man was round bellied and seemed that in any other occasion he might have been jolly and happy, but the look on his face now was serious and grave. He didn't have hair that made Sarah think she was looking at the sun. No, his hair was more of an earthy brown and his blue eyes twinkled with a merriment that, despite his cold demeanor, seemed to come from his very soul.

To her relief and horror, Jareth was sitting at a table to her left with his mother next him and Jeaule and Erina behind them. The contrasting twins gave her encouraging smiles and then went back to the unfeeling attitude that everyone else was holding.

Jareth seemed to be holding an inner battle with himself. One moment his expression would be that of a little boy on Christmas who had gotten everything on his list and the next he would seem like the little boy who had just been told Christmas was cancelled. It was very unnerving to watch so Sarah just looked straight ahead as the gavel was struck and the trial commenced.

"This trial is now in session." The dowdy woman in the center had a surprisingly crystal clear voice that held the same lilting Irish tone that everyone else in the Underground palace shared. "This is the trial of Sarah Williams. She is accused of sentencing Jareth, King of the Goblin City, to the Darkness knowingly." The woman pointed the gavel at Sarah. "You will have the chance to defend yourself, but it will most likely do you no good in this court seeing as the word of a human isn't trusted here."

Sarah stood, mouth agape. She couldn't believe the words that had just come from this woman's mouth. That woman had just basically called her and her entire race liars. If she hadn't been on trial here that woman would have gotten a piece of Sarah Williams "lying" tongue.

As it was she had to suck it up and do her best not to dig herself into a bigger hole with these people. The last thing she needed or wanted was to be sentenced to death in a land that she didn't even know because of a man she barely had spent any time with. It just didn't seem fair, but she wasn't exactly in Kansas anymore…that really would be a handy phrase for her now.

"The first thing I would like to respectfully request is to know the names of those condemning me." The three judges looked back and forth at one another. The man had a small grin on his face at her kind impertinence, but the woman to the left looked ready to go into a rage. Luckily, the woman in the middle looked unmoved and decided to answer her question.

"The man to my left is Dagda; he is the leader of my people. To my right is Morrigan who is the head of the Morrigan Mob as we call it." The two next to her nodded as they were introduced as the woman in the middle straightened her back even more, which Sarah thought impossible. "And I am Danu. I am the Mother Goddess. Satisfied?" Sarah was about fed up with their condescending attitude towards her.

"Yes."

"Now will you please try to defend yourself so we can get on with this?" Fury built up in Sarah like a flame fueled constantly by gasoline, but she had to fight it or be consumed by those flames. She took a deep breath and gathered her thoughts that she had been dealing with only a day now.

"When I came to the Underground the first time, I came to save my baby brother who had been taken by Jar…the Goblin King."

"But you wished him away!" Morrigan interrupted her. Sarah balled her fists and dug her nails into her skin to keep from spontaneously combusting, but kept her voice level and restrained.

"I had no thought in my head that any of this was real. I was simply acting out a book I had read."

"You said it with conviction though, you had wanted it to happen…did you not?" Sarah hated being confused.

"No, not really. I wanted to make myself feel better by venting my anger. I didn't think that something or someone I had always believed to be mythical would come into my parents' bedroom and turn my world upside down." She wasn't interrupted this time. This time they gathered into a huddle and were deliberating over that bit of her story. It seemed to take forever and her heart was pounding so hard it felt like it was going to come out of her chest.

She looked over at Jareth who had the strangest expression. He seemed to be smiling at her and frowning at the same time. It looked like pity, but she wasn't sure. It was hard to decipher him. A gavel clacking made her jump and look back up at the three carriers of doom.

"Ok, we understand your human ignorance in that situation, but you still said it and Jareth was bound by magic to come and fulfill your wish." Danu had a point there. She hadn't thought that Jareth had to do it, she had always automatically assumed the victims role. Oh she hated feeling guilty when she felt no need. "Please skip your journey as it is of no consequence to us. Just tell us what happened on that final meeting with you and the Goblin King."

"Well, he offered me things I couldn't fathom at the age I was. I couldn't understand the feelings that he felt or grasp the depth of what he offered me."

"Just how old were you?" Dagda seemed genuinely intrigued and moved by what she had said so far and she knew that he would be her greatest ally in this trial.

"I was only sixteen."

"That is old enough to have been married and had a child by then. How could you not have understood and grasped everything he was offering you?" She had known what he was offering, but she hadn't been old enough to take it or to really understand it.

"Humans don't get into marriage and kids that early anymore. We usually wait until we are in our early twenties on."

"How old are you now?" Again Dagda asked simple questions.

"I am twenty-two years old." His brows raised and he locked his hands behind his head.

"So would you accept all that he had offered you now?" She felt her jaw drop and her face flush.

"I-I…I want to be in love." Still that obnoxious smile stayed plastered on the man's face.

"Could you not love him?"

"I don't know, I haven't really spent any time with him and the time I did spend with him he was either confusing or he was the bad guy. We never really had great alone time." This got a wide smile from the man and surprisingly smirks from the two ladies sitting next to him.

"What if you got the chance now?"

"I don't know. He is still the same him. I was terrified of him before and now he has reason to hate me on top of everything. He was the enemy, the bad guy. I don't know if that is the real him or if that was just a façade put on for my benefit, however that might have benefited me I don't know. So I can honestly tell you that I don't know what would have happened if I had gone through the Labyrinth at the age I am now as apposed to when I was sixteen." Her head was buzzing with all the new thoughts that flew into her head as her monologue flew on without interruption. "I mean perhaps if I had gone through the Labyrinth now instead of then I would have understood things a lot better. I have been thinking about this a lot since I have remembered it all."

"What do you mean by that?" Morrigan burst.

"I was taken to a doctor after I returned from the Underground and that doctor made me forget everything that happened here so long ago." All had narrowed eyes.

"Why?" It had been said by Danu, but it might as well have been any of them by the looks on all of their faces.

"Because my family thought I was going crazy. I was spouting off about things that, in my world, don't exist and I was saying they were real. They thought I had gone insane." Dagda looked sympathetic to her plight and Morrigan seemed just as upset over everything as usually, but Danu kept her composure and her opinion to herself. Sarah had to admire that this was why the three of them had been chosen, they balanced each other.

"That is most unfortunate and I do feel sorry that your family did that to you, but I have to only consider the dealings of this case so will you please continue on what you were saying before?" Sarah knew that her face looked blank, she had lost her train of thought and everyone knew it.

"Things you have been thinking about since you remembered your time in the Underground!" She heard someone yell out from the crowd of people around her.

"Oh yes, thank you." She said it to no one in particular, but she felt it right to say anyways. "Well, I was saying that I had been thinking about it and what I thought was this. If I had gone through it now I might have seen things a lot differently. I would have taken the way Jareth acted as more sexy than frightening." Sarah blushed as she said it and looked over at Jareth. He didn't look confusing now. In fact, he seemed to be glowing from that compliment. The grin on his face would have melted her if she wasn't already baring herself to the whole of the court.

"Also, I most likely would have accepted his offer and then tried to get him to send my brother back anyways."

"That would have been much more diplomatic and he most likely would have done it." Danu looked over at Jareth who nodded in agreement. Sarah wanted to cry. She was seeing everything so clear now when it had been fogged before.

"He only wanted me to be happy. He did everything I asked him to, except give me my brother back." And then it clicked in her head. "He kept my brother in order to keep me longer." She looked over at Jareth again. He looked like his heart had just been broken again….and she knew she had broken it both times.

**Tears** were streaming down her face as she realized all that she had given up all those years ago. His heart wanted to melt for her and go embrace her and make those tears stop, but it remained frozen and stiff. He couldn't…wouldn't let himself break like that. This was the girl who had shunned him and sent him to the Darkness. How could he get past that? Danu was speaking again and calling for order.

"Now child I have one final question for you and the answer to this one question will make or break everything that has gone on here in this courtroom." Sarah nodded through her tears ad fought to get them under control. It was harrowing watching her. "Did you know the consequences of your actions?"

"No, no a thousand times NO! If I had known what was going to happen to him I would have tried to figure out another way. He might have been my enemy at the time, but I still wouldn't have wanted him to suffer that!" His heart ripped as he watched her bare her soul to the court and herself. She hadn't known any of this would happen to her. All she had wanted was her baby brother back. Perhaps…no he couldn't think like that. Thinking like that would make him hurt again.

The judges were convening and with yet another smack of the gavel Danu called for order and told everyone in attendance that they were going to go into their deliberation room to determine exactly what to do with this situation. He wasn't sure what he wanted to happen.

'You want her to suffer as you suffered all those years in the Darkness. She can't go unpunished.'

'But she didn't know what she was doing when she condemned you to that place.' Jareth really hated that subconscious conversation that went on in his head lately. It was the angel and devil on his shoulder situation and he grimaced at the thought of it. That was such a human thing to have to suffer through.

'You know you can't forgive her…she gave up everything once and there is no reason she should get the chance to have it again.' That was so true. Why should he offer her something that she had already turned down once?

'Because you know you still love her.' How he wanted to stifle that angel on his shoulder. It would be so much easier if he could just silence that half of him forever. 'But why must it be me that is stifled? Why can it not be that voice telling you what you feel is wrong?' Because it's easier to hate.

"We have reached our decision." Danu and the other two judges returned from their room and their deciding conversation. He felt this mother lean over and sensed her warm breath near his ear.

"That was fast, I guess your human didn't do too well defending herself." If he didn't know better he would have thought that he saw his mother wipe a tear away. "It's too bad, because she moved most of us here." She straightened back into her chair and awaited Sarah's ruling with baited breath like most others in the room. Jareth's conscious was silent; perhaps they were sitting invisibly on his shoulder waiting for the judgment like everyone else.

"We have decided that while the girl didn't realize the consequences of her actions, she must still be punished for the act of treason which she committed. Her punishment will not be as severe as we had once thought. She proved herself an uncharacteristic example of her race and that impressed us enough to lessen her sentence." Danu cleared her throat and the whole audience took a deep breath at once, including Jareth. "The girl is sentenced to a censored version of our slavery."

Slavery in the Fae or the Gods courts was a horrible thing. The slave was forced to be always naked and was constantly sexually and physically tormented by their master or anyone their master chose. It was a spirit breaker like no other. Princes and Princesses went into the slavery and came out acting no higher than a scullery maid. It truly was a dreadful fate for anyone. Jareth grinned on the inside while his heart screamed, but he kept his face unreadable as he awaited Danu to tell what he Sarah's censor would be.

"She will not be forced to be always naked, but she will have a master and he or she will choose when and where she will be punished. Her master or mistress will not be allowed to debase her in public. Sarah's censor is that whatever happens to her will only happen in the privacy of her master or mistresses rooms. Now to the choosing of a master or mistress." The room was abuzz now.

Everyone there wanted Sarah as their very own to torment and tease as much as they wanted. Jareth didn't want anyone else to be able to touch her that way or hurt her that way. He thought of all the terrible things that people could do to their slaves…everything short of drawing blood or physically hurting them. That meant they could do anything sexual to her that they wanted and Jareth didn't want anyone else to touch her, but he also didn't want to be the one that had to do the punishing.

"Jareth?" Danu was trying to get his attention. He looked up at her and raised a brow to show her he heard her. "We were wondering if you would like the first choice of being her master. We thought you might have fun with being able to act out the punishment yourself." He looked at Sarah…she had that same pleading look on her face that he had during their last meeting. It steeled his heart.

"No, let someone else deal with her." He saw her face fall and practically heard her heart break. Good, now she knew how it felt to be denied. He stood up and walked out of the room, not even wanting to wait and see who got the pleasure of having Sarah at their beck and call. All he cared for at that moment was that he had won a battle…now her heart had been shattered too.

**Sarah's** heart felt numb as she watched Jareth walk out of the courtroom without so much as looking back at her. So he really didn't care anymore, she truly had lost her chance with him. The gavel clacked again as the courtroom had gone in an uproar of mirth at Jareth's turning his shot down. Now she would be given to one of them.

"Now, now everyone. I want order in this courtroom! I know who I am going to hand her over to so don't you all get excited. Lord Tur, please come forward and take this woman into your custody. Remember her restrictions and please follow them or I will be forced to reconvene this court for your trial."

A tall, stately man walked forward and bowed to Danu. He had a grace to him that was bred not learned and it awed Sarah as much as it frightened her. When he was close enough she saw his deep jade colored eyes stood out in stark contrast to red tinted skin. His hair was neither red nor brown, but that coppery auburn color in between. He didn't seem like someone that would hurt her, but that only put Sarah more on a defensive.

When he reached her he looked her up and down and grinned, not in a malicious way, but an honest grin. He was very happy to have her as his beck and call girl she assumed. His hand was out before in what seemed an instant. So he was a Fae too was he? As long as he didn't do that popping around the room thing she might be able to live with this situation. If only she had known what was in store for her, she never would have been so calm now.

**(A/N: I am sorry this took so long to come out! I really will try to write this faster because I don't want to lose any readers! I love getting the reviews for this story because there so many more people reading this one than my Pure Blood story, even though that story is friggin' awesome too.)**


	6. A Confidant & Explanations

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything…it all belongs to Jim Henson and anyone else affiliated. For those who have asked me…yes this is a Jareth/Sarah pairing, it's just going to take a little persuading to get through to Jareth. I dunno if its just me, but I HIGHLY doubt that Jareth would be sappy and drooling waiting for her to come back. He had to be pissed and/ broken hearted that she beat him, denied him and left him all at the same time. I do assure you that this is a J/S pairing story though! **

**Lord** Tur led her silently back down hallways, but this time the twists and turns were different and she was getting confused. He hadn't said one word to her and it was becoming unnerving to be around him. She almost wished that the Goblin King could be here, at least he would be yelling at her or talking…or something.

As they walked on she thought back on the little time they had spent together so far. He hadn't seemed that pissed off at her, but back there in the courtroom he left her punishment in the fate of another's hands. How could he? Even if he was mad at her, wouldn't he want to be the one punishing her so he could get his anger out? Unless…he didn't want to be the one to hurt her….

Her thoughts weren't able to continue on their path of understanding because she was suddenly jerked to a stopped by her new...master. Oh that was just a horrible thought to have. How could a man have that much power over her? Sarah really wished it had been a woman that she had been handed off to. At least then she might have been able to retain some dignity during whatever these punishments were. One thing she did know was that she was to be naked whenever they weren't in public.

This frightened her more than potentially getting hurt. Sarah hadn't ever been with a man like that. Truly told, no man had ever seen her naked before and this was to be the most humiliating, how long had Danu said, oh yes…. "As long as she deems necessary." Fabulous. What a wonderfully vague answer.

"In you go." She heard that deep male baritone voice ring out through the air to her. Lord Tur wanted her to enter an open doorway. She peeked her head in and saw that it was a private bedchamber. Her face drained of all color and she felt like she was going to throw up.

"What are you going to do…?" His jade eyes seemed to soften from their gem-like state for a moment at the clear fright that must be ringing in her eyes.The kindness and understanding she saw in them was enough to give her hope that this wouldn't be too bad. Though, every kind twinkle was gone from his eyes as a group of Fae passed them in the hall cat calling and cheering him like construction workers.

"I wish I had your good luck Eireach!" Sarah looked up at him confused. She had thought that Tur was his name; guess not. He smiled winningly at them and ushered her into his room a little less than forcefully.

"You know what you are supposed to do now." He said nonchalantly as he passed her to sit at the desk. It was like he was telling a dog to sit. There was no more thought or cruelty to it than that and it frightened and confused Sarah more than anything else that she had encountered on this terrifying trip to the Underground. Eireach turned from his seat at his desk and looked at her. "What are you doing?"

Her hands were crossed over her chest, grabbing either shoulder and she was still fully clothed. It was just so hard to think of even taking off her shirt in front of this guy let alone every thread of clothing on her body. His face was set in a frown that looked so wrong on his striking face. It actually looked like he was uncomfortable himself, but he got up and came over to her.

"You have to do this. If you do not you will get yourself into even more trouble and trust me you don't want that." He didn't sound like he was trying to be menacing so much as he was honestly trying to help her.

"But I…I just can't." He leaned his head to the side in thought and reached an elegant hand out to brush strands of hair from her face.

"One so beautiful is ashamed of herself?" She did a double take at his words. "So you are shy. Ok, I will let you wait a moment until we know each other a little better." Sarah was so grateful to him she could almost hug him if she wasn't still frightened.

"What do you want to know about me…? I'm just some human; the fact that I am unwanted and uncared about here was made perfectly clear to me in that courtroom." She stayed quiet, but kept the sting in her words. Really, she couldn't help it…it was her nature. Expecting a slap or something worse she steeled herself to it and only received laughter in response. She opened her eyes abashed.

"You don't think much of us do you?" She just shook her head and didn't say anything. "Well then I will tell you this once and once only. Gods and Goddesses don't care for humans. Most Fae don't either, but there are a select few that do…me being one of them. That is why Danu gave you to me." Sarah turned her gaze to him, she was so confused by everything.

"But why give me to someone that likes humans? Why not give me to someone who will punish me terribly? I thought they wanted me to be hurt." Eireach sat down on the plush black comforter that covered the bed. He looked like he was suppressing laughter and that only made Sarah more upset.

"Dear Sarah…you weren't paying attention during the end of your trial were you? No I guess not, you were quite busy crying." Her eyes blazed at his and she wanted to rip that smirk off his face, but she feared the repercussions. "The high council understood your point in the case and they were lenient to you."

"Oh yay, I got to be a naked private slave instead of a naked public slave. They are so forgiving and understanding." This time the tall Fae lounging on the bed burst out laughing.

"You have such spirit Sarah. That is what they loved. You didn't hold back and cower like most humans. You are an exceptional human. That is why they gave you to me. They didn't want such a powerful presence wasted and broken in the court. Your sentence with me will not be horrible." He gestured to the bed and motioned for her to sit next to him.

"But what will you do to me?" Eireach sighed and leaned back on his elbows. He made it look so elegant and graceful…such a simple movement and it was art in her eyes.

"I will do only what I have to and no more." Her brows rose and she questioned further, testing the waters with him.

"What does 'what you have to do' entail?" As he turned his head towards her his longish coppery hair fell over part of his face making his eyes stand out even more. His hair came down to about mid face and when it fell in front of his face it made him seem even more handsome. She was always a sucker for the long hair type. He was almost too breath-taking to look at, quite like Jareth, but in his own unique way.

"I have to keep you naked whenever we are alone and I must punish you till you have at least welts." She gulped and bent over double, putting her head between her knees. Her stomach felt like it was going to make the trip up her body itself instead of its contents.

"How are you going to punish me?" A strong hand was on her back rubbing it back and forth trying to calm her.

"The wooden paddle is customary and probably the least painful of all the tortures. I will use that until you are raw enough to satisfy the gods for the day and then we can relax." Sarah could feel the tears slipping from her eyes.

"I will grow old and die here under the Gods punishment won't I?" The hand on her back stopped moving and pulled her up into a sitting position. The look on his face was one of shock.

"No one has told you anything about the Underground have they?" Wiping away some rouge tears form her eyes, she shook her head. "Oh Gods, Danu gave me a greater task than I thought. Most humans don't take this news very well." Suddenly that knotting feeling in her chest was back and she didn't want to hear whatever it was he had to say.

"What could be that horrible?"

"Well, if a human is in the Underground for a long length of time they become Fae." Her eyes went wide with the shock of what he was telling her.

"Do you mean that I will become immortal?" He bit his lip, thinking.

"In a way."

"What do you mean?"

"Fae are immortal, but eventually everyone gets tired of this existence and the Fae move on to the next." Her brow furrowed.

"What do you mean? They die?" He brushed his hand through his hair and trying to think of a way to explain it to her.

"It's more like just turning into something else."

"Reincarnation?" He sighed and then nodded. She didn't need him to tell her that what she said wasn't exactly it, but it was close enough. "So how much more will I age before I stop?"

"You will pretty much stay as you are now." She smiled at the thought. "You are taking this a lot better than other humans have." Sarah really didn't understand that one.

"Why would they not take that kind of news well? I mean humans Aboveground want to be immortal. We strive and strive to advance our medicines and anti-aging creams just to make ourselves feel younger. I just don't see why anyone would take it badly." The way he looked at her seemed almost reverential.

"You are truly amazing Sarah." She crossed her arms and tried her best to look peeved at his distraction. "Oh you want an answer. I guess they take it badly cause having themselves told that they are immortal lets them know that they will never see their family again. They will outlive them and everyone they know will die."

Sarah thought about that and could only think of one person that she would actually really miss from Aboveground, Toby. After everything she went through for him, she would never see him again. She could feel the tears coming back now. Ok, she could see how people might take it badly then, but she only lost one person.

Anyone else must have lost whole families. If the pain she was feeling could multiply to a whole family she could see how it would break someone. The hand was back on her shoulder. He was soothing in his kindness and she silently thanked the Gods for him, literally. At that thought she couldn't help but laugh.

"Wow, you are taking it really well!" She looked up at him, tears still in her eyes, but laughter in her voice.

"I just thought of something funny. As far as the taking the immortal thing badly…well I am only losing one person. It will be very sad not to see him anymore, but I didn't have anyone that I cared that much about back in the Aboveground." He nodded understandingly.

"Well, we should get to what you have to do." She grimaced at the thought, but he hugged her. "I know this won't be easy for you, but I am your confidant here and you don't have to worry about me. I won't hurt you…well, no more than I have to." He said it so comically she had to laugh at him. "Now come on, let's get this over with so we can get back to talking!" Eireach had a giant grin on his face that made her feel much better.

"Oh alright! Just turn around." He raised a sardonic brow.

"I am going to be seeing you naked quite a lot my dear…shouldn't you just get used to it?" She pointed to the wall behind him.

"I will get used to it later, as of now I am not so turn around!" He laughed again, his lilting voice drifting through the air as he turned around.

"Remind me who the master here is again?" She snorted as she got her clothes off for her first punishment, which she still felt that she didn't really deserve, but she had to sigh and think….

'It could be worse.'

**Jareth** was pacing his suite furiously. How could he have let her punishment be placed in someone else's hands? Who was going to be touching her? What would they be doing to her? Oh Gods, his head hurt just thinking about it.

Ever since he had stormed out of that courtroom his bad conscious had been silent and that damned angel had been chatting up a storm, making him feel like crap. He hadn't even stayed to see who she had been turned over to.

'Oh I hate everything about her!' His mind was racing with his ebbing rage. 'Oh, but I don't hate her. I don't hate her at all. I just hate what she makes me feel…human.' She made him feel so very human and vulnerable and he didn't like it. He was the Goblin King! Jareth didn't like feeling like he could bend to someone else's will instead of the other way around.

That was why he had handled everything with Sarah so horribly. He had felt vulnerable so he had put up a defense against it. The only defense he had ever known as King of the Goblins, hostility. It was like the proverbial little human boy hitting the girl he likes to show affection, it didn't really work that way.

That had been made perfectly clear to him in the courtroom and that was what had stung him deepest. Sarah hadn't even really realized his affections were as deep as they had been. All she had viewed him as was the monster from her storybooks, but when they had danced in the ballroom…had she not felt and grasped his love then? He had even proclaimed it in song.

_I'll paint you mornings of gold  
I'll spin you Valentine evenings  
Though we're strangers till now  
We're choosing the path between the stars  
I'll leave my love between the stars_

And then he had said 'Falling in love' only about a hundred times after that. What more could she want? He didn't know and couldn't fathom what it might be at the moment…all he did know what that he had messed up some how and he had no clue to how to fix it. He wasn't able to ponder the ways to fix anything because his mother stormed into the room all fire and brimstone.

"How could you let her be handed off to someone else for that kind of punishment! Really Jareth you disappoint me! I thought she was 'your beloved human'?" He hadn't heard his mother this angry since she had been yelling at his father…oh Gods, is that what he had become…his father? His stomach reacted to that thought by churning till he had to sit down or throw up, he chose sitting down.

"Mother, not now please." At least that wasn't something his father would have said. The fight would have been raging at her 'impudence' by now. His mother on the other hand seemed to think that she was still talking to that tyrant he had to call kin.

"Not now? Not now! How can you be so calm when Sarah is off in the hands of Lord Tur for her slavery punishment?" Maesia was near to screeching she was so upset at him. It was a truly amazing sight.

"Lord Tur? She was handed to Lord Tur?" His memory grasped at the image of a handsome, tall man with copper colored hair and beguiling green eyes. Sarah was with him for her punishment? Jareth let out a worried yelp at the thought. "But he is a human sympathizer. He will treat her kindly and earn her trust. What if she falls in love with him during what he gets to do as punishment?"

Jareth forced himself to think of all the things that Eireach was allowed to do to Sarah. He could beat her, but not so hard that it maimed her permanently or made her bleed. The worst thing that he had the power to do was be intimate with Sarah. What would happen if she did fall in love with the kindhearted Lord?

Jareth would never have the chance to make anything up to her and he would have lost her to someone beneath him. Oh, that was the part he couldn't stomach. It was a gut-wrenching feeling he had never experienced and he didn't like it. He was sure that his mother could pick up on his thoughts…she always could and his face wasn't exactly masking anything at the moment.

"So what are you going to do about this? She can't love someone else. That human loves you now…don't lose her." Her voice was so much calmer and kinder now, but why?

"Why the sudden mood swing mother?" She drew back quickly, as if shocked by his words.

"Can't a mother feel bad for her son?" His eyes narrowed menacingly and knowingly.

"Tell me mother." Her hands went up in a flighty attempt to sway him from the subject.

"Oh Jareth you always jump to conclusions!" But she didn't have that supreme confidence in her voice that she normally had. Her voice had broken for an all knowing instant that Jareth leapt on.

"You are lying to me! I am your King and I DEMANDto know what you are keeping from me!" His mother seemed to cower before him. When he stopped fuming to look into her eyes he saw something that shocked him...fear. He dropped his shoulders and sat in the nearest chair, enveloping his head in his hands, ashamed.

"What is happening to you my son?" He peeked through the dark sanctuary of his hands to see his mother cautiously inching towards him, still frightened.

"I don't know." He felt a tender hand on his knee and placed one of his over it. "I don't know."

**Eireach** put the paddle away as tears were streaming down her face from her first punishment. It had been worse than she might have thought and now she couldn't help but think of those S&M freaks that liked this shit. She couldn't see how…it hurt like hell and Sarah had felt absolutely NO pleasure in it at all.

Her limbs wouldn't even obey her commands to sit up and get her clothes on. She felt strong hands on her shoulders, coaxing her to lay still. Her body tensed as horrible thoughts came to her mind. Was he going to take advantage of her now when she couldn't fight him?

But no, all she felt was a cool substance being poured on her pain ridden buttocks. Eireach then started rubbing in the cooling liquid and she jumped as the pain seemed to come through once more. It hurt less than the smack of the paddle, but still stung as his hands touched raw flesh.

As the massage wore on she could see that this might be the part that the S&M guys liked. This pain seemed to be linked to her nervous system in some weird way that was actually starting to turn her on. She jerked away from him, frightened by her sudden willingness at what was happening to her. Sarah couldn't go on like this anymore.

"I can't have you doing this." He looked confused, but after looking into her eyes knowing washed over his face.

"I am truly sorry, I did not mean for what I was doing to do that. I was simply trying to ease your pain." He looked genuine, but Sarah still wasn't sure that she wanted his hands on her body anymore.

"I just want Jareth to do this." She threw her hands up over her mouth at her blurted statement. It shocked her more than it had Eireach, he actually looked like he had expected that. He was nodding his head as he handed her a towel to dry herself of the aloe.

"I knew you loved him." She could have fallen dead right there. From his reaction to hers she thought she had. He came and caught her, helping her to lay down so she wouldn't hurt. "Are you so shocked at having your feelings for the king stated by someone else?" She blinked back into reality and looked at him with wide eyes.

"It's not that, it's just that I had never actually said it to myself. So someone else saying it threw me." He handed her a new garment, a robe, to cover herself with.

"Well, do you…love him I mean?"

"I don't know really. You were in the court when I talked about him. He was the bad guy for all intents and purposes back then and he hasn't proven himself otherwise since." She thought of everything he had done to her again, trying to see it from his point of view, but it was too much for her right now. "I just know that of all the people down here, he is the only one I know and the only one I have rampant, unexplained feelings for. I don't even know what the feelings are, but I have some and I won't feel comfortable having anyone else touch me intimately like you did." Eireach sat up next to her and started thinking Sarah supposed by the furrow of his brow.

"Well then we can do this…I will still have to punish you, but I can get Erina and Jeaule to come and take care of you afterwards. That would surely make you feel more at ease?"

"Yes, but I really still feel uncomfortable having you even see me naked. In the few hours we have known each other I consider you more of a brother figure to me than anything and…well…." His hand rose to stop her.

"I understand. So we need to find a way to get Jareth to take you as his slave. We need to make him jealous so he will confiscate you so to speak."

"That's a lovely way of putting it." Sarah muttered. She didn't like being talked about like a sack of goods, but such was her situation. "So what are we going to do?"

"Ok, bear with me here, you stay on as my slave…now, now, now don't get huffy or interrupt, just listen." She had started to speak, but he silenced her. "I will parade you around the court as my companion. We are always together and chummy. It will drive the king mad to see you with me like that for I saw the love in his eyes too…if only for an instant." Sarah snorted at the thought.

"He doesn't love me…he felt bad for a moment, nothing more." He seemed to want to say more, but thought better of it. She wished he had continued to shoot down her idea, because the thought that Jareth might actually care for her had sent momentary butterflies through her stomach.

"He will still want to take you for his own." Eireach placed his hand on her cheek and traced its contours with an elegant finger. "You will be the most gorgeous jewel in the court when you are with me and it will drive him crazy. We Fae are a vain species and Jareth, as king, is the worst of us. He wants anything splendid that anyone lower than him possesses. Trust me Sarah, he will be your master sooner than you might imagine." With a smile on her face, Sarah allowed Eireach to hold her as she fell asleep.

**Viewing** the orb was Morrigan's job this shift and as she watched the king realizing his faults she silently cheered. Perhaps there was hope for him yet, he seemed to be coming to terms with his feelings for the human faster than the human girl was was coming to terms with her feelings for him. He might even take it upon himself to take her from Lord Tur. All in all, Jareth was making the God's happy, but he was Fae…his quickness in the situation had been expected.

It was a good thing too because the Darkness was taking him over faster than they had been expecting. She and Danu both had been almost sure that he would take her as his slave and do the punishing himself…thus leading to their making up and his human being able to save him from the evil eating at him. Jareth had disappointed them in that courtroom, but it wasn't really his fault.

The Darkness had seeped into him and was making him feel the negative things he was feeling. It was making him snap off at his mother and was keeping him out of control of his anger. More or less, it was slowly devouring him. Only the goodness of love could kill it and the only true love he felt was for the girl Sarah. The gods had tried to find any other way, but she was it.

So they had sent the vision of the owl to the girl Sarah, trying to get her to remember the King. Of course they had known about her therapy and the fact that she no longer remembered any of the Underground. Danu had been the one responsible for giving that thought to the human's father in the first place. They had known of Jareth's feelings and thought it best that the girl not remember, in case she ever thought of coming back.

But that had been a bad move on their part. Gods were capable of mistakes, it was true, but rarely were they made. In this case they had to force the girl to remember the Goblin King so they mimicked his voice and told her where her things were hidden. They had forced her to remember everything that had happened in the Underground, hoping it would make her come back.

After her parents had treated her like dirt, she had done just what they had wanted her too and called on Jareth. He was released from the Darkness in return and was able to come back to his refurbished kingdom. Morrigan could only hope that this human wouldn't display her species tell tale stubbornness in the situation, but she doubted it.

This girl, this Sarah was stubborn as an ox and Morrigan was sure that the human wouldn't bow to her feelings for the Goblin King easily. She only hoped it she would bow to them before the Darkness got hold of Jareth completely. If she did not then there was no hope and Medb would win.

Medb was looking to take Jareth in as one of her suitors. No god or goddess had a good feeling about this. Medb never asked for a suitor personally so she must have a plan for Jareth. What she was going to use him for…no one could say, but as soon as Sarah had wished him out of the Darkness, Medb had been there asking for him.

They couldn't have Jareth go as one of Medb's suitors…all that ever happened to them was that they all died, save for the champion that killed all the others and then he was slain by Medb herself. She never actually took on a king. All she took them for was entertainment. But usually the suitors came of their own accord, wanting to see if they could be the champion that she was looking for.

Most men would do anything for her. Her beauty was renowned far and wide. But the Queen of Faeries should be nothing less than stunning. Unfortunately, she was also ruthless and unmerciful. An evil Jareth in her clutches could mean that Medb had plans of taking over the Goblin kingdom or perhaps even worse yet…the whole of the Underground, but the gods couldn't tell.

The gods, in an attempt to keep him from the clutches, had made a pact with her. If Sarah could get him to love again and force the Darkness out then Medb couldn't have him. Medb agreed to this, but added her own clause to the deal. Sarah and Jareth both had to proclaim their love to one another in order for the whole thing to be final. It had been agreed.

Now the Gods and Fae alike were looking to this one human to get their king to love her and she love him in return. The only thing that worried Morrigan was the fact that Sarah could succeed in banishing the Darkness from Jareth and Medb could still take him if one or the both couldn't say 'I love you.'

**(A/N: Hope you enjoyed the chapter. I know that it seems a little Beauty and the Beast, but I assure you nothing will turn out like that. It's not only beauty that has to say 'I love you' this time! The song, As The World Falls Down by: David Bowie, but if you didn't know that then…wow. LOL Trust me, Jareth will stop being a douche bag eventually. He just needs time to get over being banished from his kingdom and having his love denied…etc. **

**Whew…there are a lot of people reading this story and not even everyone that's reading it has reviewed chapter 5 yet. LOL. Thank you everyone for reading and reviewing! It really makes my day to get reviews! I will update again within a week so watch out for it!)**


	7. Gentle Persuasions

**(Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters that you remember from the movie nor do I claim ownership to any characters that you might recognize from mythology…etc. **

**I revamped from this chapter on, things were needing to be addressed that I hadn't. And now I have…so yay.)**

**Tricking** Jareth was going to be a harder task than Sarah might imagine, but Eireach knew that it could be done…over time. The daunting part of the task was trying to figure out exactly when, where and what they were going to do to make the king jealous. They had now gone through an entire week of planning and still they hadn't thought of anything quite good enough.

"So what the heck are we going to do?" The strained and tried voice of Sarah came from next to him on the bed. She was lying on her stomach with her feet up in the air and linked. The look on her face was confusion and frustration battling for control.

Over the past week Eireach had truly grown fond of the girl. Her stubborn nature was surely why King Jareth had tripped head over heels for her; it was the perfect compliment to his own. Now if only he could pull his head out of his royal ass and see that for himself everyone would feel a lot better.

"I don't know my dear. Though whatever it is I fear we are going to have to go below the belt and play dirty." She propped herself up on her elbows and looked at him with apprehensive curiosity.

"And below the belt playing dirty entails what exactly?" He laughed at the way she always took everything he said the wrong way. While he was quite comfortable with her, she was still a bit nervous around him when things like that were said.

"It only means that we will have to pretend to be completely enamored of one another while we are outside of this room." Her eyes lit up with a mischievous gleam and her lips spread into a wide Cheshire cat smile. "I see that is a terribly discouraging thought for you."

"What do you have in mind Obi Wan?"

"Who the devil is that?" She chuckled at him. Sitting up, she ran her hand through her hair and tucked her feet under her so she was sitting cross legged.

"Never mind…you wouldn't know him. So what is it that you are planning on doing?" With a Cheshire cat smile of his own he led her to the closet he had filled with clothes for her, some more revealing than others. An hour later they were ready to walk out the door and down to dinner.

"King Jareth is going to faint when he sees you in that." He stood back, appraising her. She blushed and tried to use her arms to cover her body in nervous reaction. Eireach walked over to her and gently took a hold of her hands. As he brought them down to her sides he looked deep into her eyes. "We have to be in love tonight my dear. If you act shy and demure around me no one is going to believe anything." Her head nodded slowly.

"I know. I think…I think we should practice first." He smiled at the way she was stumbling through her words. "You know just so it looks convincing to Jareth and the court." She couldn't even make eye contact with him.

"What frightens you so?" She shrugged. "Are you frightened of me?" A vigilant shake of black locks responded. "Well, then what is it?" He held her head up and looked into her eyes.

"I have…never really…kissed anyone before…ever." Her voice had steadily dropped through the sentence and everything made sense. He hugged her close.

"Oh Sarah…I never knew you were SO innocent." She smiled meekly at his warm tone and action. Pulling back, he motioned her over to the bed. "Come sit, I will teach you and we will make this all look flawless. It will kill him to see this tonight and I guarantee that he will cave soon."

Sarah sat on the bed and folded her hands in her lap. Running a hand through copper locks, Eireach shook his head at the contradiction sitting in front of him. She looked like a siren and yet…she had the soul of a virgin. It was an amazing and arousing site, but who wouldn't be turned on at the creature sitting there on his bed. It was very likely that she would be the cause of injuries tonight and now he got to teach her how to kiss.

"Ok. It's really not all that difficult and if you can channel the essence of that outfit you are wearing I think you will be a natural." He really was trying to be light hearted about this whole thing. If he was serious and technical with her it might make her draw back even more and they had a serious show to put on. "You know what we could do?" She looked up at him hopefully.

"What?" He wracked his brains for a way to delay this night's adventure so that they could get comfortable in their play and make rumor spread. And then it clicked in his head.

"We aren't going to dinner tonight…." Her face scrunched up in confusion.

"Why not?"

"We are having food brought here for the next week. We aren't going to leave this room till next week." Her eyes widened as she caught on to the plan.

"To spread rumor about why we're not attending dinner. People have imaginations and they will let them go wild." It was gratifying knowing that his 'partner in crime' at least had brains.

"And it will give you time to get comfortable with me and for us to get our act down pat." She jumped him and gave him a big hug and smacked her lips on his cheek in a big kiss. He started laughing deeply. "Well maybe we can go to dinner after all." She jumped back, a shocked and frightened look on her face had taken over the flushed cheeked happiness of a moment ago.

"No!" Again he laughed. Putting hands on her shoulders, he reassured her.

"Don't worry…next week. Next week we will do it." She calmed. "And please stop being so jumpy around me. I am your friend and your FRIEND I shall always be. I want no more from you my dear, trust in that." Her shoulders slumped and she laid down with her head in his lap.

"Oh I know, it's just so hard for me. I have been brought back here…by my own doing…I KNOW, but still. And what I thought was going to happen didn't and I have been thrown in with you, no offense."

"None taken." He moved out from under her head so that he could lay down next her. Propping himself up on his elbow, he looked down at the soft dark tendrils of hair that were splayed across his bed. He followed them up to her face where her big soulful eyes were pleading with no one in particular.

"And I was turned into a slave AND a Fae no less." She sighed and tilted her head to look up at him. "I guess I am just a little out of sorts, but I will try and stop acting like that around you. Now that I really have to I guess it's really good incentive." Without so much as a word he leaned in slowly and kissed her lips so tenderly that he wasn't sure he wanted to back away.

"There was your first lesson." His mind and blood were racing. "And if I do say so myself, you did a marvelous job." Her eyes were slightly glazed over and he ran his fingers over her cheek. "Are you ok?" She nodded softly and in a rare move of courage moved herself nearer to him and placed her own kiss right back on his lips.

The raw power of her kiss shocked him down to the very core of his soul. He hadn't expected this kind of passion to unleash from the girl, but the kiss was slowly turning into the next step of his lesson and he would be damned if he was going to stop it. He pulled her closer and deepened the kiss.

It was amazing the way she purred under his lips. It wasn't a sound he had ever heard before, but it was something that he wouldn't mind hearing over the next few days. In fact, it was so potent it made things occur that he hadn't expected and he had a very serious need to end the kiss. Pulling back he looked into her eyes again. They were glassed over as before, but they had that carnal look in them this time, that instinctive need. It was damn near impossible not to take her right there and obey his own instincts, but he couldn't, he had promised her.

"Wha-what's wrong?" She didn't seem fully in charge of her own mind at the moment. Eireach placed her at arms length and started breathing deeply to calm himself down.

"Nothing my dear, that was perfect…a little too perfect." Sarah must have been coming more to herself because her cheeks flushed, but she didn't look away from him…progress. "I will tell you one thing, you do that in front of Jareth and smoke will be pouring out of his ears in no time!" A light laughter flowed from her.

"I guess if practices keep going like that we are going to have to be a little more careful." He nodded solemnly as he fought the emotions flooding through his head.

"Yes Sarah, we will have to be careful."

**Lightening **flashed in Morrigan's eyes. What was Lord Tur doing!? The poor oaf was falling in love with the girl! This wasn't part of the plan at all. What if Sarah fell for the kind and sweet Lord too? Then all would be ruined and all of the Underworld would be in grave danger.

Jareth needed a kick in the ass soon and HARD! Why couldn't he just be himself? He was known to be every bit as nice and kind as that blasted Lord Tur! If only he could get passed all that hate and anger towards Sarah and get back to the love. As the thoughts stirred in her head she began thinking more and more about Eireach and Sarah's plan.

It had promise, but it couldn't be overplayed. If they stuck to the plan and kept emotion out of it, Sarah would be with Jareth by the end of their dinner performance. The thing that clung to her mind was the terrible chance that they would do just the opposite. It just couldn't happen…she couldn't LET it happen. In a flash she was outside of Lord Tur's rooms. A brisk knock later she was face to face with him.

"What are you doing here?" Her brow lifted warningly. "I didn't mean it that way…I am just shocked to see milady here." He bowed softly and stepped aside to allow her access.

There was the girl, sitting on the bed just as she had seen her in the orb. Her hair was disheveled from his hands traipsing through it and she was dressed in a skin tight two piece red out fit. It was a strapless top with a hem that trailed down to a point right above her belly button and a skirt that started dangerously low on the hip and glided down to the floor. The skirt was deceptively prude, but when she stood up it revealed its hip high slits on either side.

"You…go somewhere else." And from the depths of that shy look came the fire from the courtroom. This human was a truly amazing creature…she stopped herself mid thought…she really had to start thinking of this girl as a Fae now since that was what she was becoming.

"I will not!" Strong-willed or not, no one talked to Morrigan that way. With a wave of her hand Sarah was enclosed in a clear box. It seemed as if she was trying to talk but had lost her voice, but that was not true.

"What is that?" Eireach was next to her and pointing to the box which held Sarah.

"It's a sound proof box. If she prefers not to leave then she can stay, but this conversation is not for her and I prefer not to hear her." She moved the box over into a corner and then sat down in a chair on the other side of the room. The tall form of Eireach walked over to her, casting worried looks over at Sarah as he did. "Do not worry about your slave…she is perfectly safe and unharmed in there."

"What is this meeting about Morrigan?" She adjusted her robes, in no hurry to begin what she had come here for. Nothing was worse than someone who tried to rush everything.

"I have come to talk to you Eireach about what, exactly, you think you are doing?" He looked surprised and he drew back into his chair a bit.

"What are you talking about?" Oh the gentle lies…how she hated them. She leaned forward and put fire behind her eyes.

"What do you think you are doing with the girl Sarah! You are not set to fall in love with her! STOP!" He blinked…bewildered.

"I am falling in love with her?" The poor fool didn't even know when he was falling in love.

"Yes…while I could care less what you feel…I can't have her falling in love with you." Hurt filled his eyes and his fists balled into white knuckles. Through sad eyes and clenched teeth he continued.

"And why not?" He stood up in a fury. "Am I so horrible?" Anger obviously was not the way to deal with this man so she tried something that she really wasn't all that good at…compassion.

"It's not that Eireach." She stood and placed a hand on his heaving chest. "It's the fact that she is slated for a different life…for a different mate. The Underground needs her to love someone else. If she doesn't then the Underground will be in jeopardy." He still didn't look convinced.

"Who must she love then…? And what the hell is the Underground in jeopardy of…a goblin uprising?" Oh he was acting so…so…so human. It was frustrating!

"It is not your will to know the Gods plans!" The fire in his own eyes were surprisingly lethal and she found herself actually feeling sorry for the man. "She must love and be with Jareth." It seemed as if his very soul had been punched. All fight was gone from his eyes as he slumped back down into the chair.

"Of course it should be him. He is the king…why should he not have her?" She kneeled down in front of him so she could see his face.

"I know that you hurt, but they were and are already in love." His face flashed anger again, but this time not at her.

"He has a funny way of showing how much he loves her then! He signed her off to a horrible fate and I took her in. I take care of her! He doesn't care at all!" It was very draining to sit here and listen to this. If this was human emotion then she was truly happy that most Fae didn't possess it.

"His heart was broken in two when she denied him. All those years in the Darkness made him limp along on hatred to get through. How happy would you be to be thrown into the Darkness by the one you love and had offered everything to?" Finally a bit of understanding filled the Lord's eyes.

"That would hurt immensely." He looked over at Sarah. "If she had done it to me I have no idea what I would have done or how I would have acted in his place." Those soft coppery locks shook as he finally accepted his fate. "While I can't promise not to love her, I promise not to give her reason to fall in love with me."

"Thank you for seeing reason Eireach." She stood to leave, but was stopped by a hand on her arm.

"You never told me what the Underground is in danger from."

"And I am not going to tell you…I can not." She prepared to leave again, but he cleared his throat. "What is it!?" He pointed to the corner where a very perturbed dark haired girl stood incased in glass.

"You could let her out now." After an annoyed flick of the wrist she went home.

**Jareth** was just getting mad now. They hadn't been in for any meals for a week! Hell, they hadn't even been seen in a week! There were so many stories flying around the castle about what was going on behind those closed doors and each new one he heard disturbed him more than the last.

It was a gut wrenching feeling to think that he was actually feeling jealous of Lord Tur. The last thing that needed to happen was for him to go soft and go begging for Sarah to be turned over to him. How weak would he look then? But as he sat there at the head of the dinner table he thought desperately to himself about how close he was to doing that very thing.

In a flourish of noise and color the doors were swung open and two people walked in. He couldn't tell who it was, but once the gasps and oohs and ahhs started sounding, he didn't need to see. It was them…Sarah and Eireach. Those two names didn't even SOUND right together! He told his inner voice to shut up and watched as she, they…came into view.

She quite literally took his breath away. Her dress looked like it was practically made of air the way if flowed everywhere. He looked her over from head to toe. Her 'dress' if you wanted to call it that, was more of a bodice. The color of it was a soft pink with darker pink ribbons around the top and bottom. It was skin tight and fit snugly down to a point where it covered everything vital, just barely.

The whole thing was strung with pearls that hung on her shoulders, trailed down to her hips and strung across them in a graceful bough of beauty. Wispy locks of silken material flowed down from the bodice, creating a skirt of the strips of material that parted as she walked so her legs could be seen with each step. The material looked like one cohesive, flattering skirt when she stood still…highly deceiving.

Her legs were covered with thigh high stockings that were topped with the same soft pink material as the bodice with a darker pink ribbon through the middle. No shoes adorned her feet as she glided through the room. Her hair was pulled back almost carelessly and a flower the same shade of her outfit was placed behind her left ear. The overall effect was almost mind-numbing.

He wanted to get up and go to her, pick her up and take her to his chambers. He just wanted to make everything better between them just looking at that outfit…everyone in this room was probably thinking things along those lines. It was probably at the same time that everyone else in the room was watching when she turned and kissed Eireach on the cheek. You could almost hear the breaking of male hearts through the room.

It was even worse when he turned and picked her up into a lurid display of a kiss. Jareth had never wanted to hurt another being more in his life, not even Sarah. Jareth sat, fuming as Eireach lowered his hands till they were grasping her butt. It was a display that should have been kept back in that bedroom they had been staying in. Jareth cleared his throat and stood. They snapped out of their embrace and were now trying to hastily straighten out their clothes.

"If you two are done, will you sit down and eat? No one needs to see that while they are trying to consume dinner." He wanted to grab her and keep her from falling in love with Eireach.

'You don't want to lose her again do you?' The good voice in his head piped up. That damned thing always had the worst timing. He admitted to himself that he didn't want to lose her again.

'You aren't going to give in to wanting her punished that easily are you!?' On cue, its counterpart vocalized its way into the conversation. It had a valid point though. Only a look at her scantily clad and in the arms of another man had almost sent him over the edge wanting to make everything better.

He looked over at the two now. They were feeding each other their food. It was a disgusting display of romance. He was staring at Sarah when her head turned and their eyes met. She looked surprised at whatever it was that she found there and then looked almost guilty. His hopes were about to brim when Eireach turned her head and planted a kiss on her lips. When he was done kissing her, Eireach's gaze drifted up to Jareth. The bastard had a smug look on his face that Jareth wanted to rip off, but he wasn't going to give in this easily. He let them have their fun and ignored them as best he could through the dinner.

As if sensing his discomfort, he saw his mother motion to one of the court to go up to him. Of course it was one of those girls that were always hanging around his mother. What were their names? Erina and Jeaule…? That sounded right, but which was this? It was the sister with the black hair…which was this…Jeaule? NO! No, this was Erina.

Her hair was loose and cascading down her back. Her outfit was not quite as scandalously revealing as Sarah's, but it certainly gave her and run for her money. She had on a hip hugging deep red silk skirt that was slit in several places, giving everyone delicious glimpses of leg as she walked towards the king.

Her shirt, if that's what it could be categorized as, was a piece of material that was bordering on transparent. There was a tie behind her neck and one behind her back that kept that scrap of material clinging to her body. She must have covered herself in a shimmering powder because she seemed to glow as she walked to him.

When she got close enough he could see the mischievous gleam in her eyes. This was something that she wouldn't mind doing at all. In fact, when she reached him she draped herself over him. A wicked grin crossed his face as he saw the seduction in her eyes and on her lips.

"I have been waiting for a long time for the right to do this." She moved forward and placed her lips on his neck. Jareth looked over at Sarah who was staring straight at him with a look of shock or devastation on her face. He didn't have a chance to figure it out because Eireach grabbed her and turned her around.

Eireach pulled her into a deep kiss, but for a few moments it seemed as if Sarah didn't want to be in it. Jareth wanted to throw the girl off of him, but jealousy drove him over the edge when Eireach pulled away from Sarah and turned to give him that smug look again. The king pulled the girl onto his lap and kissed her.

As he kissed her he felt her stir beneath him, but nothing stirred within him. Was this the cruel fate he was to suffer now? There were to be no other women for him if it could not be Sarah? He didn't want to think of that, but one thing that he did know was that he didn't want to be kissing this girl anymore. Jareth pushed her away after he broke the kiss. He propped his head on his hand and covered his eyes. Feeling a hand on his shoulder, he used his other hand to remove it.

"Go sit back down Erina. Sit down." He heard an indignant huff and a flurry of whispers. Slamming his fist down on the table, he shouted at the crowd. "Shut up everyone! That was not the only spectacle of the night!" His eyes shot daggers at Eireach. "I am through with dinner." This was the last place he wanted to be right now and so he got up and left.

"**Well** that went well…!" Sarah plowed into the bedroom she had been confined in for a week…a wasted week. Everything that they had planned, everything they had worked for had been flushed down the drain thanks to Jareth's arrogance. She had to be fair, the little trolip in the skimpy clothes hadn't helped much either.

"It went better than you think Sarah." Eireach's soothing voice came from the bathroom where he was changing from his dinner clothes. After Jareth had stormed out they had eaten their dinner in peace and then left. Eireach poked his head out of the bathroom door to look at her. "Did you really think that it would be as easy as one dinner?" She sighed and plopped unceremoniously on the bed.

"No." She admitted to herself mostly. "I knew that this would turn into an ordeal thanks to his stubborn ass, but I hadn't exactly expected him to start drooling over other girls to try and rip my heart out." Eireach walked out of the bathroom in all the glory of his birthday suit. Sarah covered her eyes and threw a pillow at him. "Geez Eireach…come on!"

"What?" He looked down at himself and then back at her in confusion. "Oh I forgot that you have a problem with the natural form." He started putting on clothes, but kept talking as he did so his words were muffled at times. "You know Sarah, you really have to learn to be comfortable with everyone's natural forms."

"And why do I have to do that?" She thought back to all of the naked slaves and the air of normality that surrounded everything. Everyone seemed non-pulsed by the naked slaves leaning to serve them their meals. He was right, it was just something that she was going to have to get used to. She looked back up at the now fully clothed Eireach and waved a hand at his look of amusement. "I know I know. I will get over it eventually."

"You had better." He went and grabbed a book to read.

"So…Eireach?" She scooted on the bed till she was closer to where he was sitting across the room. He looked up at her and grinned slightly. "What are we going to do now?" He placed the book down and walked over to sit by her.

"We keep doing just what we did tonight until he takes you back. I wish you could have seen the look in his eyes when I would give him those smug, contemptuous looks. It seemed like he wanted to run over and snag you up right there. He doesn't like to be openly mocked and I was playing the ace." He ran a hand through her hair and down her back. "Don't worry Sarah, you shall be free of me soon enough." He hadn't meant to place that hurt in his voice, but it was already done and now she looked upset.

"What are you talking about…I will be free of you…? You think I hate being here?" This wasn't the card he had hoped to play.

"I didn't mean that…just forget I said it." But with Sarah that was easier said than done.

"Yeah right! What the hell do you mean? It not like I am screaming and crying cause I am with you. I just want to be with Jareth!" She seemed more shocked by her statement than he was. "I meant that I would be more comfortable with him." She saw the look in his eyes before he could mask it. "Eireach…" She touched his shoulder. "Do you…?" He pulled away quickly before she could finish.

"No. I don't. I am playing a part. I promised to get you back to your Goblin King and get you back to him I will." She still looked upset.

"Eireach…" He spun around.

"I said drop it! As my slave you are sentenced to do as I say and I want the subject to be closed." She pulled back as if he had slapped her. There was a moment of horrible silence before she turned and got into the bed. Guilt washed over him like a tidal wave. "Sarah…I didn't mean to…."

"No…you said exactly what you meant….master. Goodnight then. Tomorrow at dinner we will be ready to play our parts. I must get to Jareth as you said." He hit himself and then mentally berated himself some more as he got into bed and tried to fall into a fitful sleep.

When he woke up the next morning, Sarah was already dressed and sitting by a window reading. She still looked hurt from last night. This simply wasn't how he wanted to be around her. He loved the light in her and he had succeeded in blowing it out last night with that gust of hot air he blew at her.

"Sarah…?" She looked over at him with sad and yet understanding eyes. The book she was reading was placed on a table next to her and she made her way over to him.

"What you said to me last night was about the shittiest thing that anyone here has said to me." He looked down in guilt. She was right, he had treated her worse than anyone had since she had been here and that was saying something. He felt a hand on his chin and felt the pressure of it guiding his face up. "I understand why you said it though."

"I wasn't supposed to. I was told not to, but…I couldn't help it." She was nodding.

"I know Eireach. It happened to me too." His eyes lit up with hope for a moment, but she raised a hand to stop him from spewing his soul. "But…." He slumped back into the bed, his coppery curls falling over the pillow.

"There had to be a 'but' didn't there?" She looked so sad.

"The last thing I want to do is hurt you, but…I just know I can't be with you. You know I can't be with you. Trust me…you are the only soul-deep kind person I know here. I would love to love you, but something keeps my heart from fully falling. I think I know what it is, but I don't think I am ready to admit that even to myself." He knew what she was talking about. He had seen it in her eyes at dinner.

"Jareth." Her sad nod cut his heart. "Well we always have until he figures out that he wants to take you. We could always make the most of that without strings." Her hand trailed up his torso till it was covering his heart.

"How much worse would that make our parting?" Eireach knew she was right, but he took her hand and pulled her down so that her head was resting on his chest.

"It would make our parting terribly hard, but at least we would always have the memories of loving each other." He leaned down to kiss her forehead. "It is far better to have loved and lost." Her eyes filled with tears, but she brought her lips up and touched them to his.

"Ok…but when the time comes we both know that this has to end." Even though it broke his heart, he would do anything to hold her at least that long. He knew he was risking the wrath of the gods, but he didn't care anymore.

"Agreed." They both sat there without talking for a while. It was a terribly uncomfortable silence. He tilted his head to look down at her and saw that she was looking up at him. It was less than a second later and he didn't even see the movement, but her lips were on his.

"If all we have could be today then I want to have something to remember." He smiled as she ran his fingers through her hair. It was so soft, like silk and her skin was creamy perfection. Her features were looking more and more Fae by the hour. It was the fastest transformation he had ever seen. She was no longer a gorgeous human, but a startlingly stunning Fae woman. Unable to hold himself back any longer, he tightened his grip on her hair slightly and urged her down to him.

"Then I will give you a lifetime of memories." She placed a hand on his chest before he could go further.

"I want to warn you that I do not plan on sleeping with you." His heart took another nose dive.

"Why not?"

"Because I am a virgin and I know now that I have been subconsciously saving this for…"

"Jareth," He finished for her. She nodded. Eireach leaned back and sighed deeply. "Being with you when you didn't know how I felt was torture enough, but now that you know and I know that you care too…it's going to be hell." Sarah crawled over to him and cuddled next to his side.

"There are still plenty of other memories we can share." As much as he wanted to, he knew that his heart wouldn't be able to handle it.

"I think it would be best if we just acted as we have been. Our act will just be more believable now. I am sure if Jareth sees the true passion that we share, he will take you from me far faster than before." He could sense her getting upset and tears were the last thing he needed to see right now. Standing up, he reached his hand out to her and helped her up. "Come on, let's get dressed and spend the day together. I will show you around the kingdom and we can have this day as our memories." She nodded and walked over to the closet.

When she came out he felt his heart skip a beat at the sight of her. She was wearing a pale violet dress with sheer white overlay and silver bead work on it. The sleeves were the sheer material and hung loosely to the middle of her upper arm. The bodice of the dress had a beautiful whisping design embroidered on it with those silver beads thrown in as little flower designs.

It had an empire waistline that was created with a dark silver ribbon that was lined with the silver beads again. From the empire waistline it had an under dress of the pale violet colored material that had a simplistic swirling design printed on it. The sheer overlay was split in the middle by a gorgeous tiny diamond broach at the empire waist. It trailed down her body and its edges were embroidered with a variation of the bodice's whirling design.

She seemed to glow wearing that dress. It might have been the way that the sheer material glittered, but he was sure that it was the Fae magic that was now pumping through her veins. Nothing better could have happened to her than to have been brought here. On impulse, he walked up to her and pulled her into a kiss.

"Wow…I guess you like the dress." She laughed lightly and then headed out of the room. He caught up to her and watched the faces of the nobles as they walked by. The men dropped there jaws at the sight of Sarah or gave him a light nod. The women merely admired Sarah's dress or looked irritated that she was on his arm. Mostly, everyone was just appreciating the view of what they thought were two people in love. They weren't far off…they were watching two people who would like to be in love, but were unable to.

They reached the gardens and he showed her through the many different paths. It was a lovely day, the sky a warm pink and the clouds low. It was made even better by walking through the gardens and the palace grounds with Sarah.

As they were walking through what was known as the Queens Gardens, though no queen had ruled since Jareth had come into power almost seventy years ago, he looked up at the balcony that led to the King's personal rooms. It might have been his imagination, but he could have sworn that he had seen a figure move quickly out of the doorway.

**Seeing** her in the Queen's Gardens had unnerved him. It had made him think back to the times where he had thought of her walking those gardens on his arm…as his queen. Made him think back to how much he had wanted those daydreams to become realities.

'They could still.' He really didn't want to hear his conscious right now and tried to block it out to no avail. 'If you want her, then taken her back. If you play at this game you will only drive yourself crazy.' Jareth knew that his conscious was right, but he couldn't bring himself to go down and take her. He turned to where his mother was sitting, planning the ball that was to take place the next evening. He heard her reading off the guest list and couldn't help the groan at the mention of Medb's name.

"Must she attend mother? With the god's already thinking badly of her?" Maesia looked over at him and scoffed.

"You know very well that I have to invite her. If I do not, she will be offended and could make things even worse." He sighed, but knew that she was right. That must have warned her as to his mood because she turned to him, concern in her eyes. "What's wrong Jareth? Still worried over Sarah…?" She didn't give him a chance to answer as she plowed on with the conversation. Ever since dinner the previous evening she had been practically foaming at the mouth because he hadn't demanded she be turned over to him. "Can't say I didn't tell you so…" Jareth was tired of her ranting and cut her off.

"Yes mother I know…" but she was not so easily dissuaded.

"Then what is wrong?" He motioned irritably at the window behind him. She huffed and got up to check. "You couldn't just tell me!?" He shook his head and watched her cross the room. He knew the moment she saw them, because she rounded on him. "I can't believe you are letting them wander around the grounds together after that dreadful display last night!"

"What is it that you would like me to do mother?" He conjured a crystal and looked at Sarah through it. "She is obviously happy with him, why force her to be with me?" One glance at his mother and he knew he had said the wrong thing. Her red hair was wild and she might as well have been breathing fire.

"I am tired of you wallowing around like a toddler who got his toy stolen! I did NOT raise you to be a sniveling cry baby!" Jareth knew that provoking her further wasn't a wise idea, but he didn't care at the moment.

"You didn't raise me to be a tyrant either mother. If I were to go and force her to leave him to be with me that would be exactly what I am." Narrowed emerald eyes bored into his mismatching ones.

"What is the difference between a tyrant and the way you treated her the first time she knew you?" He hung his head because he knew that she was right. But he also knew that was exactly the reason that he didn't want to force her away from Eireach.

"That is it mother, I don't want to be the way I was the first time around. That frightened her and she hated me. She thought I was a horrible man. Why would I want to repeat that?" His inner voice kicked in. It always did when he started thinking this way. It's like it didn't want him to give in to Sarah, like it wanted him to stay mad at her forever.

'So you are done then? You don't want her punished anymore?' He fought his emotions because he knew that a part of him still wanted what that voice was talking about, but he also knew that a greater portion of himself just wanted to forget it. Most of him just wanted to love Sarah and have her love in return.

"So you are telling me that you are willing to sit at dinner and watch those two practically devour each other at the table?" His mother always knew the button to hit. Deep within himself the fires of jealousy kicked on and he was suddenly mad again.

"No, if they do that much more I don't know what I will do." Maesia's face calmed and she walked over to her son. He felt her hand glide over his own and he gripped it.

"Do you remember one of the first things I told you and Sarah when you arrived back at the Goblin City?" For the first time in a long time, he cracked a smile.

"Which part? That was a whirlwind of information that day." His mother smiled softly and urged him over to the couch. After he was seated she sat herself down next to him.

"I am talking about the part where I told you both that you cared a great deal for each other, but you just didn't know it yet…." The memory clicked in his head and he looked back up at his mother.

"Yes I remember that, what is the point?"

"Now I want you to think back to the trial." His heart skipped at thinking back to that day. He didn't want to.

"I know it hurts Jareth, that's one of the points I am trying to make to you." She lifted her hand and trailed her fingers down his face. "If you didn't care it wouldn't hurt you like this." She stopped for a moment.

"Why do you want me to think of that day? Just so I know that it hurt me? That I didn't want to see her like that?" His mother was shaking her head lightly.

"That was only part of the reason I wanted you to think of that day. I wanted you to think back to the look on her face when she realized what you were really doing. When she realized that you really loved her." He didn't need to be reminded. That look had haunted him since he had turned down her slavery.

"I know mother. I know that she cares for me. I know that if I could have pulled my head out of my ass that day that I might be the one kissing her at dinner and walking with her through the gardens." He stood up and stormed over to the window. He could still see them out there. "Don't you think that knowledge eats at me everyday?" Jareth heard her stand up and walk over to him.

"Then why can't you do something about it?" Jareth kept looking down at the smiling figure sitting next to the fountain. He sighed and drew the curtains.

"Because she is happy now."


	8. The Ball

**(Disclaimer: I do not own rights to any characters within this story, save for those that I created myself. All rights and privileges to characters from the movie belong to Jim Henson and all the wonderful people that created them.**

**I totally revamped from chapters 7 on. I needed to get Medb in. People needed to see her and now we will. Plus things were wrapping up way too fast.)**

**Sitting** down when they were finally back in their room was a very special moment for Sarah. She took off the offending shoes and swore to kill them as soon as she had control of her feet again. Eireach was sitting down in his lounging chair to read the book he had started the night before and she threw the shoes over at him.

"What was that for? I thought we had a nice day." He was looking from her to the offending shoes. Sarah laughed and then walked over to him.

"Yes we had a lovely day, but those shoes were made by Satan and I had to throw them. It made me feel better." He put on a cross face and leaned down to pick up the shoes.

"Well then, they will just have to be punished to the full extent of the law." He summoned a small crystal and crossed the room. He threw the crystal into the fire and then tossed the shoes in. "There…they can't hurt you anymore." She was laughing so hard that her sides were beginning to hurt.

"That's right! Damn shoes got what was coming to 'em!" There was a sharp knock on the door that made her jump and she stopped laughing instantly. She mouthed 'Jareth?' to Eireach before he opened the door. He shrugged, but didn't look too excited about opening the door.

It wasn't Jareth though. Instead it was an almost six foot tall woman with fiery red hair that was in elegant disarray. She didn't look happy and Sarah was not looking forward to what was going to come out of that woman's mouth once she started going off on her tirade.

"Just what do you think you are doing Sarah?" Amazingly, she sounded more upset than she did mad. Maesia looked like she was about to cry as she settled into a chair near Sarah. "Why are you doing this?" She motioned with a heavy hand towards Eireach. "I know that you care for my son…I know that you love him. Why can't you see that?"

"I do." Sarah wasn't trying to play games with Jareth's mother. She was only trying to trick Jareth, so she couldn't lie to this woman who had done nothing but try and help her. Looking at Maesia now she saw a picture perfect example of stunned.

"But then why…?" She looked helplessly from Eireach to Sarah and back again.

"It was a feeble attempt of mine to make Jareth so jealous that he would steal me away from Eireach." One pale, graceful hand went up to cover emerald eyes. Her head was shaking slightly. Obviously, Maesia didn't have high thoughts about their plan.

"That might have worked if my ego-maniacal son was still in his pissed off tyrant stage, but alas, he is passed that." Sarah scanned the woman sitting before her. What was it that she was here for?

"Then what stage is he in now and do you have any thoughts on how or what I can do to persuade him to forgive me?" Maesia sighed and leaned back into the chair.

"Forgiveness I fear will take more than simple trickery, but I do know of a way to get him to take you back." Sarah's eyes brightened and she scooted forward to sit on the edge of her seat.

"What?" Eireach sat down next to Sarah and listened intently, though Sarah knew that his heart would not be in the discussion. Truly, there was a part of her heart that wasn't in the conversation either.

"Well, now Jareth is moping around like a little boy who got something stolen from him. He just wants you happy now. He sees you with Eireach and thinks that you are truly in love with him." Sarah was confused.

"Why would that stop him? He has always taken what he has wanted before. What is the difference this time?"

"He doesn't want to be that man you met in the Labyrinth all those years ago. That wasn't him…Sarah that was who he thought you wanted him to be. He thought you wanted the villain." Maesia propped her head up on her hand. "Now he is giving you up because he thinks that is what you want. That boy will do anything for you. It is really quite inconvenient at times. This being an example." Sarah felt Eireach shift uncomfortably and her heart cried for him. This had to be horrible for him, but suddenly she heard his voice.

"So what do you suggest we do differently?" She could hear the strain in his voice and from the look on Maesia's face, so did she. Those emerald green eyes took on deep sympathy, but continued on.

"I think that the best thing to do is make Jareth believe that Sarah doesn't love you, but that you are forcing your love on her. That is the only way he will do anything about your relationship. If he thinks that Sarah is happy he is going to leave her be, but if she looks upset, worried, sad or uncomfortable then I believe he will take her away." When Sarah looked over at him she could see the tears starting to well up in his eyes. She placed her hand on his, but he pulled it away slowly. "It would probably be best to do this at the ball, so that…" she paused slightly, and Sarah caught it, but didn't question her, "…certain people can see Jareth wanting you back." Eireach's voice could be heard now, barely a whisper through his clouded emotions.

"You do know that if this plan of yours works Jareth is going to banish me from the Goblin City." Maesia looked sad still as she nodded. Sarah's heart clenched in her chest. She wanted to go to Jareth, but she didn't want to cause Eireach to lose his home and everything over this.

"No! We can't do this! It's not fair to Eireach!" She felt his soothing hand rub her back and heard his voice gently calming her.

"Sarah, I was going to leave the castle once you went to Jareth anyways. I couldn't have stayed."

"But where will you go?" He made a weak attempt at a smile.

"I have an old family house out beyond the Goblin City. I have been meaning to go there for quite some time now anyways." Sarah wanted to cry, but she wanted to jump with joy at the same time. Her heart was being pulled in too many different directions at once. Maesia came to her rescue.

"Now then, if you are going to convince Jareth of anything then you go right ahead and keep crying. A red face will be good." She looked back at Eireach as Maesia led her off into the closet to start deciding what to wear for the ball. He was smiling, but she knew it was only because he knew that was what she wanted to see.

**The** first half of the next day had been spent with Eireach and Maesia, deciding exactly what they would do at the ball. Sarah and Eireach immersed themselves in the roles they were given, but when they weren't practicing, they could barely look at one another. Every time they did, tears were inevitable.

"Come my dear, its time to get you ready for the ball." Sarah barely heard or felt Maesia's touch as she ushered her to the closet. "I had this made for you." Maesia handed her a box and Sarah finally snapped into reality.

"Oh Maesia, you didn't have to do that, really." Maesia waved her off as Erina and Jeaule came in.

"I know, but we want to catch his eye and there is no way you can fail to do so in this dress." Sarah looked up at her apprehensively.

"Its not a big poofy dress is it?" Maesia smiled at the pleading. "Please say its not a poofy dress" Maesia took the box from Sarah's hands and placed it on the chair in front of them. They were back in the first room Sarah had been placed in when she came to the castle. Maesia thought it would be easier for Sarah and Eireach to prepare for the ball without looking at one another.

"It is, I assure you, NOT a poofy dress." She chuckled slightly when Sarah audibly exhaled in relief. Before Sarah could think, Maesia lifted the lid of the box to reveal the jewel of a dress she had created for the girl. Watching the pure rapture flood over Sarah's face made all the sadness of the day wash away.

"Oh Maesia!!" Sarah ran her fingertips reverently over the brightly colored and patterned material. It looked like a field of wildflowers and when Sarah lifted it from the box she made a throaty sound of pure pleasure. "Its gorgeous…" Her voice seemed far off as she inspected it and gasped as, when Maesia snapped her fingers, it was on her body. It had a deep v-cut neckline that plunged daringly between cleavage that wound up into a strap behind her neck that kept the dress on. The back dipped so low as to be nearly obscene with a pretty silken dark maroon tie at the base of her spine.

The skirt gathered in and up on her right hip, exposing all of her right thigh and dragged behind her slightly on the ground. It was the back of the skirt that had Sarah most entranced, it had peacock feathers that seemed to morph from the pattern of the dress into a reality of feathers at the bottom. Maesia gestured to Jeaule, who brought forth another box, smaller this time.

"I also have your mask, since this is after all a masquerade ball." Sarah gasped again as the shiny onyx mask was revealed. It was a simple black mask true, but the top was adorned with the most beautiful, most perfect peacock feathers she had ever seen. Maesia led her over to the vanity and sat her down so Jeaule and Erina could get to work on her makeup.

"Maesia, you have done more than you needed to. How could I ever thank you?"

"You can thank me by getting my stubborn boy to get over this moping attitude of his. It really is starting to bore me." Sarah smiled as Jareth's mother leaned in to inspect the job that Erina and Jeaule had done. "You really have taken to the transformation beautifully Sarah. Has anyone told you that?" Sarah's brow knitted as she remembered the one who had.

"Yes…" Maesia nodded in understanding and patted her hand.

"I know it hurts my dear, but think…which would you rather lose?" Those hazel eyes narrowed in frustration again and Maesia could see the tears starting to well. "Don't you dare start crying," she said as lightly as she could and tilted Sarah's face up to her's. "You don't want to mess up the gorgeous make up that Erina and Jeaule have just done do you?" Sarah smiled and shook her head. "You will do what your heart asks…and we both know that it wants Jareth." Sarah nodded and sighed deeply, a weary smile crossing her face.

"He is just so aggravating." Maesia laughed gaily at that.

"Yes, yes he is my dear, but if anyone can deal with it, I think you can." They spent the rest of the time getting ready smiling and talking together as if they were mother and daughter, which was a strange feeling for Sarah. She had never had a mother before.

When she was finally led back to Eireach's room, he felt her heart clench again, she didn't know if she could face him, but she knew that she had to. When he opened the door, her heart broke for him. His heart was clear in his eyes and she knew it was breaking as well.

"You look beautiful." She lowered her head demurely, but took the chance to look him over. He wore an elaborate outfit of red leather that made him look like a medieval prince, his mask looked like fire around his coopery curls.

"So do you…." He forced a smile on his face and held out his arm.

"Shall we?" Sarah smiled weakly as she strung her arm through his. "And so the spectacle begins." Sarah knew that she wouldn't have to act to hard to look miserable tonight and knew that a rouge tear had run down her cheek.

**The** masquerade had begun and his mother had been late. He was curious about that until she insisted that Erina had needed her help with her wardrobe. After seeing the girl's elaborate hairdo he believed her and let it be. He truly didn't care, he was waiting for Sarah to show up.

He needed to see her, to make sure she was happy once and for all. His thoughts had been traveling back to that moment where he could have sworn he had seen her look devastated as Erina was trying to seduce him. He had to make sure that she wasn't still in love with him.

As if on cue, the doors opened and there were Sarah and Eireach, though tonight she wasn't hanging on him as she had done the night before, merely had her arm through his. She didn't look happy though her dress was bold and bright against her skin.

He didn't have time to take her in any further as the trumpets blared, announcing the arrival of a distinguished guest. It was Bilx that came forward, clearing his throat to introduce the guest.

"Ladies and gentleman! The esteemed Queen of the Fairies, Medb!" There was polite clapping through the ballroom, though Jareth knew that no one there wanted Medb as company anymore than he did. Jareth sneered, how scandalous could the woman be? Everyone knows you aren't supposed to be announced at a masquerade ball, but surely the woman wanted the attention. His lip quivered with distain as she entered his ballroom as if it was her own.

Her dress looked like a pathetic abortion of Sarah's elegant dress. It was an eyesore that had everyone turning away from the overdramatic use of colors. The woman was beautiful, no one could deny it, but her dress made her repulsive and that was Medb's way. Jareth slipped back into the shadows before the woman got a lock on him. He did not want to deal with her unabashed flirting tonight. It always drove him mad.

He sighed with guilt as he saw Medb swoop down on his mother.

**Over by his mother….**

"Oh Maesia, I was so pleased to get an invitation to the ball. I wanted to come and see how my bet was going." Maesia's blood boiled at the haughty tone of Medb's voice. The woman was entirely too sure of herself for her own good. It kept a smile on Maesia's face to know that Sarah would far outshine her highness tonight though.

"Yes, well, it's a pleasure having you here." Complementing the woman felt like acid on her tongue, but she had to and Medb knew it. A slow, malicious sneer overtook the porcelain like face of Medb which was framed by a glory of onyx waving hair.

"So where is the silly little human that everyone thinks will steal Jareth from me?" Maesia smiled up into Medb's cold blue eyes and pointed to Sarah, who was dancing uncomfortably with Eireach. It pleased her deeper than she would ever admit to see the look on Medb's face when her highness took in Sarah's form. The flat out shock and fury that the girl, now Fae, was far more beautiful than she would ever be was more of a treat than Maesia could stand.

"Well," Medb scoffed, trying to regain her composure, "she doesn't look like much." The Queen of the Fairies was unconsciously smoothing the offending folds of her dress as she turned back to Maesia.

"She's more than you think."

**Back in the shadows….**

Jareth was pleased by the worry that had taken over Medb's face. As if he would ever love a bitch like her? Jareth kept himself in the shadows, not caring if people wondered where he was. It was a better place to keep his watch over Sarah during the ball

Jareth watched as she was pulled along in a dance, it was obvious, she didn't want to dance. Eireach seemed to think differently of what was going to happen during the ball. He kept trying to kiss her neck or touch her, but she kept squirming when he would do so. This was worse than watching her give the attention back. He jumped when her eyes somehow found his in the shadows. How did she know he was there? It didn't matter, she knew and it was like a knife to his heart when those eyes were pleading him to help.

She looked almost scared being touched by someone that she obviously didn't want to be touched by. He wanted to do more than take her away from him, he wanted to make sure that Eireach could never touch anything again.

'But this could be a nice punishment for her….' He screamed inwardly at his bad voice. He didn't want to be influenced by it. Not now when he could actually save Sarah and make things better. 'You will listen to me…you always do now.' Jareth decided to let her dance for a while longer, but he wasn't going to let it go beyond the ball if he kept that up. About ten minutes later he caught Sarah looking beseechingly at his mother. He stepped from the shadows, secure in the fact that Medb was surrounded by a group of young Fae, and crossed to his mother.

"Mother? Why is she looking to you for help?" His mother looked up at him, her irritation clear in the set of her jaw behind the crimson mask.

"Perhaps she feels that I might have the feelings to save her since you seem to not care." Jareth looked over at Eireach and Sarah and saw the bastard trying to trail kisses down her neck as he looked over at him with a self-satisfied smirk. Jareth had had enough. He crossed the dance floor and stood before the couple.

"Lord Tur, I wish a dance." It wasn't a request, it was a demand and no one refused him in his own castle. Eireach smirked at him again and gave him Sarah's hand, which gripped in Jareth's hand the second they made contact.

"Be my guest…" the Lord bowed deeply, clearly mocking him. "…your majesty." Jareth waved his hand and a new, very familiar song started that had instant tears welling in Sarah's eyes.

"So you remember this." She bit her lower lip and nodded slowly as she linked her hand in his. He felt his resolve slip as she placed her hand on his shoulder and his drifted up her side till it rested near the bottom of her ribcage. He started to lead her around the dance floor in a dance they had already shared once.

"Jareth…" she pleaded softly before cutting off, unsure of herself. His hand left her back and tilted her chin up.

"What did I tell you about diverting your eyes from me…?" He felt his lip quirk as she managed a smile, but offered nothing further about what she was going to say. Because he wanted to, he pulled her to his chest, continuing the dance where he could breathe in the scent of her hair. "Sarah…" he heard himself start. Her head rested softly on his shoulder and he caught a glimpse of righteous anger on Medb's face as she spotted them.

"Yes Jareth?" He turned his head to catch her eyes as, surprising even to him, worry crept into his voice.

"Are you happy?" Sarah's gaze dropped from his as she answered.

"As happy as I can be." The song ended and he felt a tap on his shoulder before he could question her further. He turned to see Lord Tur with that smirk on his face still.

"If it pleases my liege, I would like my slave back." Jareth was about to deny him the right when another hand grabbed at him, it was Medb.

"He would be glad to give you back your little…" Medb's glare went over Sarah dismissively. "…slave." She thrust Sarah into Eireach's arms and pulled Jareth into the next dance. "It's so good to finally dance with you tonight. I have been waiting. Where ever were you?" She tried in vain to keep his attention, but, while he answered every question respectfully, his eyes kept drifting back to Sarah. That seemed to make her livid. "You aren't a very attentive dance partner Jareth. One would think you are trying to insult me." He knew, considering what he was in for, that making her mad would be a very bad idea. She would only make it worse on Sarah when the time came if he treated the Queen of the Fairies poorly now.

"I am sorry your highness, I am simply distracted by foul doings in my very own castle. I can't be seen as weak willed by my subjects." She huffed indignantly, but seemed to take that as an answer as they continued their dance.

**Meanwhile, with Sarah and Eireach…**

"He isn't doing anything…damn that Medb!" Eireach griped indignantly. Sarah sighed, she knew he didn't mean it, but she did and she needed to push Jareth further.

"I know, we have to take more drastic measures." Eireach flinched at her determination, but he nodded.

"What do you suggest?" Sarah sighed again as she thought about what the heck he could do. She looked desperately down at her dress and knew the answer. She told him what to do and, though he looked apprehensive about it, he agreed.

"Let's just hope he doesn't kill me outright here on the dance floor." The smile he said it with assured Sarah that Jareth would do no such thing.

**Back with Jareth…**

Jareth tried desperately to keep his attention on Medb, but as he took another quick look over at Sarah, his blood turned to fire in his veins. Eireach was trying to reach into Sarah's dress despite her obvious entreaties for him to stop. Jareth was sure he saw fire as Lord Tur's hand disappeared within the top of Sarah's dress. He stepped away from Medb and with a wave of his hand, stopped the music.

"Lord Tur! Grab your slave and follow me…" He lowered his voice threateningly. "…now." Sarah looked frightened and Eireach just still looked smug. He laced Sarah's arm though his to lead her towards the door. Jareth stalked to them, ignoring the furious ranting of Medb, he didn't care about her at the moment.

Jareth led them, in a fury, down through the halls and towards the courtroom where this had all gone wrong. Blasting the doors open with his magic before he ran into them, he charged into the courtroom. He stalked up to the judge's panel and screamed out the names he needed.

"Danu! Morrigan! Dagda!" The room shook slightly before three figures made an appearance before them. None but Dagda looked all to pleased at being called there, though under their perturbed exterior, this was what they had been waiting for all this time. Danu looked down at the gathering and spoke out.

"What is the meaning of this?" Jareth grabbed Eireach with his magic and dragged him before the court.

"This man is abusing his rank as master to his slave!" Eireach gave a secret little smile to Morrigan who gave one back. Jareth mistook it and blew up. "So you are pleased that he is taking advantage of what shouldn't even have been his in the first place!?" Dagda turned to look at Jareth.

"So do you want to take control like you should have in the beginning?" Jareth hadn't thought that it was going to be a choice for him. He was really rather hoping that the gods would more take the right away from Eireach and just give it to him. Now they were going to make him say that he wanted Sarah back. "Jareth?" He snapped out of his thought and looked up at the panel of judges.

"We weren't summoned here to watch you act like a fish Jareth, now give us an answer or we are leaving." Morrigan wasn't known for her kindness so Jareth took no offense to this. He cleared his throat and looked back at Sarah. She was looking at him expectantly. Turning back to the judges, he gave them his answer.

"Yes…I want her back. I should have taken her in the beginning." Danu cracked her gavel and his world was frozen.

**Sarah** looked at Jareth, he seemed like a statue. She walked around in front of him and saw that he wasn't blinking, he was frozen in place…or time…wherever he was, he was frozen. Sarah spun around to look up at the judges.

"What is this for?!" She snapped at them. Morrigan looked furious, Dagda was laughing and Danu was calm as ever. She was the one that had the kindness to answer.

"We have suspended him so that you will have a chance to say goodbye to Lord Tur. If Jareth weren't frozen you wouldn't even have been able to wave goodbye without making Jareth curious." Eireach stood behind her, tears were showing in his eyes again. She ran up to him and delved deep into his embrace.

"I guess this is goodbye." His voice was cracking and she could feel the tears falling onto the top of her head.

"Thank you…for everything that you did for me. You helped me more than I deserved and more than you needed to. I will forever be grateful and a part of me will always love you…never forget that." He squeezed her tight for a moment before letting her go and stepping back.

"I love you Sarah. We will meet again." He looked up at Morrigan with that secret smile again, but it was a sad one. "I know it." He hugged her again and she pulled him down for a light kiss. "Goodbye Sarah." She stepped back.

"Goodbye." Morrigan waved her hand and he disappeared. Sarah looked up at her. "Where did he go?"

"I merely sent him to his home outside the Goblin City. While he is now banished from this place, he did not deserve Jareth's wrath. Now go stand back where you were when Jareth was frozen." Sarah moved back behind Jareth and watched as he came to. He shook his head and then looked frantically around the courtroom.

"Where is Eireach!?" He looked livid. Danu looked down at him.

"He is gone. We have banished him from the Goblin City, no more need be done about him." Jareth spun on her.

"This is MY kingdom and I will not have the gods giving out my punishments!" Morrigan was practically writhing with anger when Sarah decided that she should step in. She walked up to Jareth and placed a hand on his shoulder. He spun around on her this time, but she just reached up and pulled him to a kiss. She felt his body calm and his hands trailed up into her hair. When she pulled back she smiled at him.

"Don't worry about him. We are together again. It will take work for us to trust each other, but we have to forget the past to do that…he is part of the past." She held her hand out. "Let's go." He started to ruffle his feathers, so to speak, but she smiled at him again and he just exhaled deeply.

"This will be interesting." Morrigan commented as the two left the courtroom. "Very interesting indeed."

**(A/N: I am sure hoping that everyone enjoyed that! Anyways, I worked my tookus off on this chapter! I think I am back in the swing of things with it. I have a bunch of thoughts running through my head for it! I know that its very sad for Eireach…I love him so much and I hated writing all this sadness for him, but you will see him again in the story…never fear.**

**A big thanks to my wonderful reviewers! BattleofEvermore, Elanora Rose, Kerichi, LadyLuck321, LaLuneNoire, lyn, Moonjava, NazgulGirl, sightlessmuse, Solea, theshadowcat, watergoddesskasey)**


	9. A New Master

**(Disclaimer: Ok…here's the drill…I don't own it. It belongs to Jim Henson and all the special people that created it. All I am responsible for is shedding some new light on an old and beloved story. Oh my dear readers, I have neglected you and for that I am truly sorry, but I will make it up by giving you this chapter and many more till the story is complete.**

**I have removed the old version of chapter 7 because I felt it wrapped things up way too nicely WAY too fast. With all the pent up fury that Jareth has, I doubt he would let it all go the first day he has her back in his grasp. And Sarah…as much as she would rather be with Jareth, I am sure that she is still frightened of the villain that haunted her childhood. It will take a lot more than one simple argument before these two are reconciled!!**

**Also…I did change the setting of this story back to M. It was originally M and so it is again. I do plan on having mature scenes, but when there is one, I will make the scene its own special chapter for my readers that don't wish to read that. That way the M is still there, but those who don't want to read it will miss nothing of the storyline for skipping it.)**

Jareth tried to think of the reason why he was allowing himself to be led out of the courtroom like a child. When he looked down at the raven haired woman leading him, he knew that was his reason. He didn't know how to describe the feelings that were welling right under his chest. It was an amazing array of anger and delight that he didn't know how to deal with so he pulled himself away from Sarah.

"What, exactly, do you think you're doing?" He knew his tone was harsher than it needed to be, but he wasn't about to let her come right into his life and start telling him what to do. Her slight smile let him know that she already thought that was the way things were going to happen. It brought that vicious shroud of darkness back to whisper in his ear.

"I was stopping you from getting in a lot of trouble with the Gods, Jareth. If I hadn't stepped up and given your mouth something to do other than yell, you would have said things that would have earned you, at the very least, Morrigan's enmity." He opened his mouth to spout back at her, but found no words to throw. She was right, damn it she was right, but she wouldn't hear that from him.

He huffed and turned to storm down the hallways on his own. Jareth knew that he was attempting to make a point, but when he reached a corner and stole a glance back at her she merely had that smile still on her face and was walking at a normal pace, which only proved to infuriate him all the more. She should fear him! When they got to his rooms he would see that she did. She would remember the tyrant king who had terrified her so all those years ago.

He was sprawled over his couch when she arrived in his rooms and gently closed the doors behind her. '_We will wipe that contemptuous smile from her weak little human face.' _He couldn't help but think that she wasn't human any longer before he realized that the voice was back. Jareth brought a gloved hand to his face and pinched the bridge of his nose to stop the headache that was building. He didn't want to fall victim to the Darkness in him, but how could he stop it without her?

Jareth knew his ego would never let him bow to her, he sighed as she crossed the room towards him. A lump rose in his throat as he looked at Sarah again, the smile was already gone of its own accord. In its place was a strange, haunted look that he didn't like seeing there at all. The Darkness told him to gloat over it and rub her nose in the fact that now she was HIS slave, not the other way around, but his body betrayed him as fingers reached out for her. When he caught her eyes, they were big as saucers and more than a little frightened. He had to recover, his face had shown too much.

"What's wrong with you this time?" he drawled as he lounged back in the chair, seemingly uninterested. Was it wrong to lie to Sarah about his feelings, especially after what his mother had told him? Was his anger worth possibly losing his kingdom over?

"Nothing." She said quietly as she took a seat, folding her hands in her lap over the brightly colored material of her dress. Her meek demeanor was infuriating.

"Who is this weak creature that sits before me?" He smirked as Sarah's head snapped up, determination in the set of her jaw, but the fire wasn't in her eyes…he needed that fire…he needed his Sarah back. "Where is the Sarah Williams who bested my Labyrinth?" The embers lit in the gold of her eyes as a devilish smirk spread over her face.

"Don't you mean bested _you_?" A dangerous fire lit his own eyes and threatened to consume her. She held her while he was sitting, but the moment he stood to cross to her, he saw her flinch, knew her fright…and grinned.

"I assure you, it will not happen again. You are MINE now and I have no intentions of letting you go." Jareth watched with a secret pride as her chin jutted out in defiance.

"This punishment will only last so long." That only made him laugh. Oh she had no clue how truly she belonged to him, how badly he had bent the rules the last time she was here.

"Sarah, you have been mine since the moment I claimed you." Fear and confusion furrowed her brow.

"Claimed me…?" He sat next to her, aware she was scooting away from him. He waved a hand and her clothing disintegrated into nothingness. Her whole body flushed a delightful shade of red as she tried desperately to cover herself. It was then that he felt it, an untamed rush of magic, his eyes darted to the newly transformed Fae woman sitting…quite fetchingly…naked and terrified next to him. It couldn't have come from her, his mind raged…no human ever had magic, transformed to Fae or not.

She seemed just as shocked by the raw force of power she had felt…perhaps it wasn't her. He wasn't in the mood to bother with that question though as he gently wrapped his fingers around her hands, pulling them away from her body.

"Yes Sarah…I claimed you, seven years ago in the crystal ballroom that I created for you." She suddenly didn't seem very frightened anymore, livid at being naked and mystified by what he was talking about yes, but no fear was in those lovely hazel eyes.

"And just how the hell did you claim me?" The look in her eyes reminded him of the very night that he did claim her, he couldn't stop himself as he crossed and took her into his arms, filling the room with a soft, familiar tune for the second time that night. Sarah looked tortured. "Why are you playing this song again?" And then it hit her. "This song...! It always melts me. You did something to me the first time we danced together."

"See Sarah, I knew you were smart enough to figure it out on your own." He held her close, too close for the Darkness. It seemed to shriek at the very touch of her. Was his mother right? Would Sarah be his answer to the thing clawing within him? It certainly seemed like there was a brightening…it wasn't impenetrable Dark anymore, it was more like being in a dark room at night when you could only see outlines of objects. 'Oh Sarah, how much I need you…' his mind sighed. He needed her help, but he would be damned if he would admit it to anyone, especially her.

"What did you do to me Jareth?" Her voice brought him out of his thoughts and back to the smell of her hair.

"I claimed your soul that night, but…" He felt her head lift from his shoulder and cursed the loss. Those hazel eyes claimed his with a sense of hope.

"But…?"

"I about to kiss you and seal our bond, and you ran. I wanted to give you everything Sarah." Defiance shot into her eyes and it suddenly seemed like that fifteen year old girl was in his arms again.

"No you wanted to waste my time and make me forget Toby!" He sighed with impatience…he really didn't have time for this foolish talk, but then he felt it again. That untouched, wild magic and there was no mistake this time that it had come from the little minx in his arms. Well, there was something interesting to ponder, but by the look in her eyes…not right now.

"Sarah, how many times do I have to tell you that it was never about Toby. I didn't want him." She looked like tears would threaten again.

"Yes…it was about him, it had to be. Who else…?" Jareth couldn't stand seeing his strong Sarah, his champion, looking like this. He stepped towards her again, perturbed when she took a step back. Another blast of the untrained magic pushed against his chest, so she didn't want him to come closer huh? Very well…but by the Gods this woman's power was almost intoxicating…so powerful for one who shouldn't have magic at all.

"Sarah…did you ever stop to think for a moment that it might have all been about you?" He couldn't tell if she seemed more frightened by that idea than everything else.

"Why?" He backed her until her knees knocked his bed and she fell back on it. Terror, pure terror filled her eyes as she realized where she was and then the fire was back, he smiled…she mistook his pleasure. "Don't you dare!" She tried to sit up, but some well placed magic of his own knocked her back down. It made his blood sing to see her there, the rich silks and velvets of his bed wrinkled around her creamy skin.

"Have you forgotten your story already?" Something flashed in her eyes and he knew that if she had control of that power of hers, he might well be slammed against the far wall of his room.

"I was forced to forget EVERYTHING Jareth! Or do you forget THAT!?" He laughed, delighted by her temper and rested on his side, his elbow propping him up next to her. His gloved fingertip drew a slow circle around her abdomen…GODS what he wouldn't give to feel what her skin felt like under his touch.

"I forget nothing Sarah…" the warning in his voice was enough to quell whatever retort she might have had planned. "I will _remind_ you of a few things then darling, how does that sound?" She looked confused and angry now and none too pleased that she was touching her, but, he smiled, she was wise enough to keep her mouth shut…for the moment. He could feel her magic simmering, like an unwatched pot, just under his fingertips. "Why don't we start at the beginning? How does that sound love?"

"Don't call me that…and it sounds," she thought for a second, her eyes glaring daggers at him. "…peachy." He smiled and tsked at her.

"Gods Sarah…your eyes can be so cruel." He smiled at her unladylike response and continued. "Do you remember what you told your brother that night, before you wished him away to me?" Her eyes glassed at the memory.

"Yes…." She said in barely a whisper. His free hand continued its exploration of her body, touching places that he knew had never been touched by another. She was a playground of rare delights, still untouched and waiting for him. "Don't…" she breathed on a hiss as his gloved fingers trailed below her belly button. It wasn't a demand, more of a gentle pleading.

"Sarah, you are mine now, I am your new master. Or did you forget that as well?" he chided her. He heard a small groan escape her lips that could have been in disgust or pleasure, her mind was so confused. "Anyways, like I was saying…that night with Toby. Do you remember the story that you told him?" Her head nodded slowly as the first rouge tears slipped over her cheeks. The Darkness inside him cheered the tears, telling him that at long last his torment of her could begin, but his heart shut the voice out. "Tell me…tell me the story Sarah." He lowered his lips to her skin, almost jumping back at the thrill of her skin. Her back arched under his lips as he kissed right below her ribcage. He smiled…so she felt the power between them too? Good.

"Once upon a time…" she started in a voice she struggled to keep control of. "There was a beautiful young girl whose mother always made her stay home with the baby." She gasped as he placed a kiss between her breasts. "The baby was a spoiled child and he wanted everything for himself." He could feel her breathing becoming more rapid as he drifted left and right, bequeathing kisses as he deemed fit, drowning in the feel of her and her glorious response. "And the girl was practically a slave. Oh god, Jareth, please…stop." His gloved hand slid up her body and cupped her under the chin.

"Continue…you're almost to my favorite part." He reveled in her body's reaction to his touch as she continued with shaky breath.

"But what no one knew was that the King of the Goblins had fallen in love with the girl…" He felt her gasp and knew that she had realized it. "But Jareth, that was just a story…there's no way that it was tr…" a gloved finger stopped her words.

"It was Sarah. All too true." He sighed as he went back to his exploration of her body. "Now for your next lesson. Remember the last night…in the staircase room, our last conversation. What did I tell you Sarah?" He watched her brow crease, trying desperately to remember.

"You offered me my dreams, another way to distract me from Toby. I didn't have long left and you tried to cheat me again." He suddenly sat up, looking down on her with clear disbelief.

"Is that all you think I offered you that night Sarah? Truly?" She sat up and scooted back against the pillows, putting distance between them that he easily closed again.

"Of course, that was your last ditch effort." He let out an exasperated rush of breath.

"Oh Sarah…think back to what I SAID to you or was your fifteen year old mind not listening…?" She still looked confused so he decided to spell it out for her. "Good Gods Sarah, I offered you my heart, my kingdom…everything. I wanted you…I couldn't have cared less about Toby at that point in time." Her eyes went wide in shock.

"But…"

"But nothing Sarah. Listen to the words, with adult ears…" He brought his hand to his mouth, tearing the glove off, desperate to feel her skin. Once the glove was across the room, he trailed fingers slowly over her neck and along her jaw. "I have been generous up until now, but I can be cruel." Just like all those years ago, Sarah scoffed and looked upon him with those fiery green eyes.

"Generous!" His fingertips traced over her lips to still the next words, his whole body reverberating from the thrill of her power searing into him.

"Do be quite Sarah…just listen." He smiled when she cowed and nodded. He continued the words that had assaulted his soul every minute while in the Darkness. "Everything that you have wanted I have done. You asked that the child be taken…I took him. You cowered before me…I was frightening. I have reordered time, I have turned the world upside down…and I have done it all for YOU!" He watched as realization slowly began dawning on her, but still didn't let her talk. "I'm exhausted from living up to YOUR expectations of me. Isn't THAT generous?" He let Sarah begin…as if in a trance.

"Through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered, I have fought my way here to the castle beyond the Goblin City. For my will is as strong as yours and my…" his finger found her lips as he continued softly.

"Stop…wait! Look Sarah…look at what I am offering you…your dreams." He watched as more tears slid down her cheeks. She knew…at that moment in time, he had been her dreams. She might have been a fifteen year old girl, but her heart knew what she wanted, even then and had unwittingly turn it all down.

"My kingdom as great…" he smiled sadly at her, the Darkness receding from the blinding light of magic coming from her.

"I ask for so little…" he spoke gently, letting his fingertips trace over her soft skin. "Just let me rule you and you can have everything that you want." Probably not the best wording for a fifteen year old already frightened and untrusting of him, but he was offering to be her king…and she his queen. And from the look in her eyes and the tears staining her cheeks, she knew that now too.

"My kingdom as great…damn. I can never remember that line…." He pushed on…the last line tearing at his soul. His final effort to make her see….

"Just fear me, love me, do as I say and I will be your slave." A fifteen year old girl never would have known that what he described was marriage in it entirety, he reluctantly admitted to himself for the first time as Sarah turned and cried softly into his pillow.

"I didn't know…Jareth, this wasn't fair…I never knew." He let her head remain in the pillows, he didn't want to see her…didn't want his heart softened any more for the moment. He wanted to still be mad…so he would force himself to be damn it.

"Life isn't fair Sarah, the sooner you realize that the easier it will be on you. Just admit that I DO have power over you…had it even then." Her voice came like a dagger to his heart from the depths of the pillows.

"Of course you did Jareth…like you said, you claimed me." Her words were filled with disdain. "But my bond to Toby, my responsibility to him was more than that. No matter your claim on me."

"Sarah, I couldn't have claimed anything that didn't want to be." Her head popped out of the pillow, disbelief and rage clouding tear filled eyes.

"What the hell are you talking about? I didn't WANT you!" He smirked, would this fire always be between them? He sincerely hoped so…because she was beautiful when she was mad.

"Sarah, Sarah…you wanted me more than you could have known…" and that was the bane of it. She didn't know…this whole time, what he thought was freely given love at the Crystal Ball , was nothing more than a confused young human. He laid back into the pillows, defeated…again. That fact conceded, the Darkness crept back over him like a welcome blanket. "You will sleep always at the foot of my bed." Sarah looked stunned at his change in attitude.

"What!? On the stone floor!?" Her voice was filled with anger and it bit at the Darkness…Jareth didn't really want to do this to her, but he had to, he thought coldly in a voice not his own.

"Here," a crystal materialized in his hand and he threw it to her, a pillow and rough wool blanket materializing in her lap. "That should be sufficient." Her eyes raised to his and he gave an internal smirk that the defiance and fury was still there.

"Even after everything that was just said…you are still a bastard. Fine." She crawled off the bed, throwing the pillow down with vehemence. Before she lay down on the cold stone floor, she turned to him one last time, bowing deeply and condescendingly. "Good night…sire." He smirked at her.

"I like that…good night Sa—slave." Her eyes flamed at his choice of words and she laid down on the floor. He waved his hands and he was under the warmth of his covers. He smiled at the way he handled that, now she had been rejected and left with pleasures stirred within her from his touch. Yes, he thought to himself, that was handled quite well.

An hour later, he was still staring up at the ceiling. If he was so pleased with himself, why couldn't he sleep? He crawled slowly to the edge of his bed and looked down on the shivering frame of his Sarah. The Darkness seemed to melt from around him as he saw her, lips blue with cold.

It broke him slightly to see her like that. She hadn't complained, he thought, beating himself for her rough treatment. Why couldn't he be himself around her!? His mind raged at him for being so stupid. He didn't want to be this…this monster around her and yet she seemed to bring it out in him. Leaning back with a sigh…he waved a hand and a small bed appeared around her.

He knew it would be downy soft and the warm bedding around her would keep her far warmer than the harsh stone of the floor. Smiling down on Sarah, Jareth reached to push a rouge strand of hair from her face.

"Oh Sarah, help me please…I don't want to be this thing. I want to be so much more for you." She shifted in her sleep, a contented smile taking over the frown that had seemed frozen on her face. Jareth smiled once more and went back to the comfort of his sheets, his mind finally awarding him sleep.

**Back** in the courtroom, Medb was throwing a holy fit. She threw her arms out around her, gesturing wildly, her midnight black hair in disarray around her face. She had been forced to wait outside while the trial took place and stormed in after being made to wait another half hour.

"What the hell do you three think you are doing!" Her rage was so pure, she didn't even worry about incurring their wrath. She wanted to rip all that red hair from Danu's head as she turned to her, a look of boredom on her features.

"WE did nothing Medb. Jareth wanted her and he had every legal right to take her if he so wished." An unearthly shriek of resentment came from Medb as Danu stated it so softly, as if talking to a child.

"I will have him!" Her voice was crazed and she knew it, but her temper had broken. She could taste defeat and she didn't like it one bit. She never lost. When she heard the quiet chuckle from Morrigan she thought she was going to kill the woman. "I am not so lowly that you can treat me as a commoner…take care. I will have him…I will." With that she threw a crystal at her feet and materialized in her bedroom as she started ripping the dress from her body. "CYRIC!!!" She called on her lover, current lover anyways, she was sure she would get bored of him soon.

"Yes m'lady?" Cyric appeared before her. Part of her softened at the sight of him. A dark Fae he was, something that was rare and awed in the Underground. He was a hands span taller than herself, his skin deeply tanned. Eyes nearly white they were so crystal blue in a face that seemed carved from the finest marble. When you top that off with a mane of deep chocolate colored waves of hair, he was a gorgeous specimen. Medb watched as he assessed he mood…and smiled. She wanted to smack the insolent pig for assuming what would happen that night, but knew she would be wasting her time. He would like it and he was right anyways. "Could I help you out of your lovely dress?" He asked, his voice a caressing sensuality all its own. Rage boiled higher still as she remembered that little bitch's dress.

"No, I want it ripped off…and thrown in a fire!!" His brow furrowed at her passionate distaste for the dress.

"Why m'lady, you look lovely in it." She ripped the offending garment off herself since he didn't appear to be following orders this night.

"Because Jareth's little bitch human copied it…and made changes to it that flattered the eye. She stole my light!" Medb huffed, stomping her foot to drive home her point. "I will take pleasure in killing that one. Once Jareth is mine, there will be nothing to stop me from my plans." She watched the slow smile creep over Cyric's face, revealing gorgeously white teeth. Trailing a long fingernail across his face, she headed to her bathroom. "Do draw me a bath, will you darling?"

"As you wish m'lady." He walked her to the edge of the giant tub that was set into the very ground, produced a crystal and tossed it in. The water appeared instantly, rose petals dancing across its surface, their scent permeating the air. Medb practically purred.

"You know exactly what I like darling." She cooed as she inched her way into the steaming water. "Do join me." Medb watch admiringly as her lover stripped himself of his clothing. All rippling muscle, he lowered himself into the tub behind her. She leaned back on his chest and things seemed to calm with in her.

The little bastard had probably placed a calming spell on the scented bath oils, but she didn't want to bother with caring about that at the moment. Her plans swirled through her head as Cyric ran the sponge over her shoulders.

"He has to succumb to the Darkness, Cyric. If he doesn't, all my great plans are ruined. That little bitch has two months to win him over." She slapped the water in fury, watching in rapt delight as the bruised rose petals drowned beneath her hands. "I knew that I should have negotiated for less time. That mistake might be the ruin of my plans."

"Surely, even with the woman messing up your gown, the ball was fun?" She sneered at his attempt to change the subject, but he picked a cruel change and her blood heated up again at the thought of how Jareth had treated her.

"No it wasn't dear Cyric. I was treated like second rate garbage by his highness." Cyric had the brains to sound aghast, but Medb knew that he was secretly smiling behind her. He didn't like the thought of being tossed aside. "He was staring at that…that thing all night. He actually had the gall to leave in the middle of talking to me!" Her mind crept to its dark, dangerous corners. "I will take pleasure in the breaking of him. Oh Cyric, with his Darkness influenced powers…I will take control of the whole Underground. Everyone will bow to me. No one will think me a joke then. I will show them…I will show them."

Her voice was rippling with excitement at her great plans. She was finished with all the gods treating her like a joke. She would show them her worth and they wouldn't be able to stop her with Jareth at her side. Oh just thinking of how is powers would be enhanced by the Dark was enough to make her turn to Cyric and claim his lips.

"And once he is mine…I will sacrifice that little nothing of his as I was told…and then I won't be held to the Underground anymore." Cyric's eyes lit at her passion and pulled her closer. "No dear Cyric, I will have it all. I will take the Aboveground as well. Then how much of a joke will they think me my darling?" He smiled against her lips as he possessed her.

"No one will think you a fool m'lady." If she knew his plans she would have killed him in that instant, but his Fae mind kept him safe from her…for the moment.

**(A/N: Well, here is the next chapter, hope you all enjoy! Cyric should become someone you love to hate soon, much love to him. I wait, with baited breath for your reviews. I do so love them and they really do inspire! Those who inspired me to get this chapter going were…Kerichi, Solea, Princess1980, kitsamuels, notwritten and crystal13moon! You guys are awesome! Special props to Kerichi…thanks for always pushing me hun! You are the best!)**


	10. A New Leaf

**Disclaimer: I think we all know by now that none of this is mine. It belongs to Jim Henson and his wonderful team. I am so happy that you all like the story and I truly hope that this chapter keeps with your expectations! Happy reading my darlings!**

**Sarah** awoke the next morning…warm? She shot up in…a bed and with a chemise on none the less!? What the hell was going on!? Hadn't she fallen asleep, naked, on the bed? She got up out of the bed, which seemed to be almost a miniature version of Jareth's. It even had the same velvet and silk bedding, but it was the chemise that claimed her attention.

The white silk caressed her skin in a way she had only read about before. From the top was actually more supporting than a normal chemise, she figured it was a pettibone design. There was even delicate stitching all along it that looked like the twisting vines of the Labyrinth.

Exhaling thankfully that it wasn't transparent and actually came down to her mid thigh, she ran appreciative fingers over the material. It was only then that she remembered that she was at the foot of Jareths' bed and he might be watching her. She spun around on her heel, ready to accost him, but was met with the view of a very empty, very made bed.

"Well where the hell is he?" she muttered to herself, flinging her arms in the air. She heard a gentle splashing from an adjoining room followed by mirthful laughter…Jareth.

"Finally, I was wondering when you were planning on waking up." Her temper flared, she was tired of taking his flack and stormed towards the sound of his voice.

"It's a wonder I woke up at all since you made me sleep on the floor!" She heard his tsk'ing as she got closer.

"Sarah love…did you not wake up in a comfortable, warm bed? With new pajama's no less." She bit her tongue as she remembered that she did indeed wake up warm and very much alive.

"Why did you give me this? Aren't I supposed to be naked?" She almost slapped herself. She should be thankful that she WASN'T naked not reminding him that she SHOULD!

"It pleases me to see you in fineries. Why, do you not like it?"

"Yes I do, but it doesn't make up for…" she dropped off as she entered the room he was in, realizing too late that it was the bathroom and he was in the tub. Averting her eyes quickly, she tried desperately to pick up her train of thought to keep herself of thinking what he might look like naked. "For…making me sleep on the floor." She completed without the conviction with which she had started. "Geez Jareth, you could have WARNED me!" His laughter filled the room and tugged a relenting smile to her lips.

"But then I would have missed the delectable shade of your skin when you blushed, love." She cringed.

"Don't call me that Jareth."

"Why not? You know it to be true now…or didn't I make myself clear last night?" A burst of laughter escaped her throat.

"You call that showing me you love me?" Hearing his sigh was a small victory that she didn't have time to celebrate.

"No, I handled that poorly, I will admit…" Her knees about buckled under her, she was so surprised by his confession. She felt his hand on her ankle and stepped back, again, to the sound of his laughter. "So jumpy this morning darling?" Snorting derisively, Sarah decided she wouldn't give him the pleasure of her being uncomfortable and turned around to face him.

"Can you blame me after the way I was treated yesterday?" Damn…it! Why did he have to look so carelessly sexy wet? No Sarah…you are irritated at this man, don't fall for his charms, but GOD what charms they were. She forced her eyes to stop roaming his chest and back up to capture his eyes. He looked upset, even sorry, but it was replaced by a mask of indifference as quickly as she had seen it.

"Let's put that behind us love and…" he laughed at her grimace. "I am going to call you that a lot, so I suggest that you get used to it Sarah." She sighed in defeat.

"Fine. So we are to put that behind us?" He nodded in agreement.

"I did, after all, try to make up for it by giving you the bed." Sarah pursed her lips and thought about it. Did she want to forgive him? She sighed again as her heart screamed yes. He must have seen it in her eyes because he smiled. "Good…now you can join me." Her eyes went wide and she looked at him as if he had just spoken a foreign language.

"In there? No, I don't think so." Sarah watched, surprised as she could SEE the internal battle he was having. His face was harsh as she finished talking.

"Sarah, I am your master now and…" His face calmed as she watched him purse his lips, trying to gather himself. Good god, was he actually trying to contain his temper? She watched his shoulders slump and he looked up at her, exasperated. "Oh Gods, Sarah…just get in please?" Her jaw dropped. Had he just said please? Amazed that it seemed he was turning over a new leaf, she decided not to fight him this morning and stripped off the chemise. He gaze glossed as she stepped out of the material.

"Don't look at me like that…." She watched the Cheshire cat smile spread over his face that was quickly replaced with a look of innocent surprise.

"Like what love?" She couldn't help the grin that captured her mouth, but she tried her best to fight it.

"Like I am going to be your next meal." She stepped down into the jacuzzi sized tub that was cut down into the very ground and sunk as far down into the water as she could. Using her hands to cover her breasts, she settled back against the wall and closed her eyes, sufficiently mortified at being naked in a tub with the Goblin King.

"There now, that wasn't too difficult was it?" His mocking tone only made her wish all the harder that she had bubbles to hide her nudity under. Her eyes were still closed, but that didn't stop her nose from the sudden pleasant assault of the scent of vanilla and lavender. It was the scent that Erina and Jeaule had used. When she opened her eyes, she saw that the tub was indeed full of concealing bubbles.

"Jareth!" She turned to him, about to scold him for reading her mind, when she saw that he was just as surprised about these bubbles as she was. Her mind reeled as she turned again to Jareth. "You didn't do this did you Jareth?" She asked, motioning to the bubbles. His eyes caught hers, one brow lifted as he shook his head. "Then...?" He nodded.

"You did." Her brow creased as she ran her hands through the bubbles. They were quite real.

"But how?" Jareth shrugged, but he looked more uneasy than his voice let on.

"I truly don't know Sarah...you shouldn't have magic at all. No human, turned to Fae or not, has EVER gained magic powers."

"Then why the hell do I have it!?" Her heart was thumping in her chest. All her life she had wanted to be a fairy princess with powers so she could do whatever she wanted and now that she practically was…she was scared out of her wits. Jareth started scooting towards her as he spoke.

"Again love…I don't know. I wish I did. Maybe we can figure it out though." He shifted closer to her still, sending shivers through her body that she didn't want to feel. Desperately, she tried to scoot away, but he always closed the distance. After going a full lap around the tub, he sighed and stopped moving. "Sarah, I could chase you around this tub all day, but as delightful as that sounds we have other things we could be doing." Her cheeks turn to fire as do her eyes.

"I don't want...this..." she gestured wildly between them. "...to take place in a bathtub." He laughed, his head tilting back with delight.

"Oh Sarah, love...do you really think that I would let our first time be that prosaic?" He finally moved close to her and pulled her to him. "Oh no love, when it happens, as it so pleases me that you admit it will…it will be much more memorable." He leaned in to kiss her neck, his lips grazing over the tender flesh as his arm snaked its way around her waist.

"Jareth..." It wasn't an invitation, its a plea for him to stop and she was completely shocked when he did just that. Her eyes followed him, incredulously, as he moved to lean back against the tub. After a moment, he started up conversation again as if he had never kissed her.

"Very well love, what do you say to me teaching you a bit of how to use your powers?" Her mind was still so completely dumbfounded that he was being so kind to her that all she could do was nod. "I have to warn you though...I am a most impatient teacher. Displease me and I might have to..." he paused to run a finger across her jawline. "...punish you." Her body jerked back as she thought of what he might do to her. Apparently, that was rather amusing because he started laughing quietly. "Oh Gods Sarah, calm down."

"Easy for you to say." She muttered. Jareth smirked once more, a wicked gleam in his eyes that, to her horror, aroused her more than frightened.

"Touché. Well!" he said, slapping his hands down on the side of the tub for leverage. "Let's get to business then!" He pushed himself up and out of the tub, without thought to warn her. Chuckling merrily as she rushed to avert her eyes, he grabbed a towel and threw it about his waist. "Really love," he said, leaning over to run fingers through her hair. "I really am a sight you will have to get used to." He walked out of the bathroom as she got out and grabbed a towel of her own. "I have you back darling, I don't plan on losing you again." His words sent a secret shiver of delight through her body.

"Well, we will see about that," she teased as he smiled back at her. With a wave of his hand, he was dressed in a white poets shirt and tight black pants, his knee high boots hugging the curve of his leg.

"Yes we shall." His smile held a promise that made her legs feel weak beneath her. Looking him over and then looking down at her towel attire, she turned a pleading eye to him.

"What shall I wear...? I can't very well go walking around the castle in THIS!" She waved a hand over the towel. Jareth looked confused and raised an elegant brow.

"Why not?" She couldn't even formulate a thought, her mouth simply hung open until she saw his lip twitch. Grabbing a pillow, she tossed it at him.

"You're an ass…." His laughter rang delightfully through the air and made her insides weak. It really was a lovely reprieve from his anger. His eyes finally trained on her and he culled his laughter.

"Oh love, you do delight me." She bowed with a derisive smirk on her face.

"Glad to be of service." With a smirk, Jareth produced a crystal and tossed it at her. It materialized into a simple white peasant top, a black waist cincher that, from previous use in plays, she knew accentuated her figure nicely, and a sage green skirt that flowed almost to the ground. Lifting the skirt slightly, she saw that he had topped it off with black, high heeled boots that nicely matched his boots. Even her hair was dried and done up with a simple clip.

"God I can't wait till I can do that!" He smiled at her again and offered his arm.

"Well now my ambitious little Sarah. Let's find out just how powerful you are first, shall we?" She bit her lip as she blushed, laughing nervously. "Don't worry though, if what I felt last night was any indication…" he knew her eyes were trained, accusingly, on him for not telling her then, but he ignored it. "Then you are probably almost, if not AS, powerful as me." Her mouth hung open slightly in amazement.

"As powerful as you…?" She felt him stiffen next to her and her heart started speeding out of control. Was he mad again?

"Yes, well that would seem fitting since I claimed you and we do so seem to be fated for each other." Her heart calmed as she felt his body relax. "It wouldn't do for the kingdom to have a weak Queen." This time her knees did betray her and Jareth's grip tightened around her as she slumped next to him.

"What the hell are you talking about!? Queen!?" She stared up into his mismatched eyes. "I thought I was your slave?" Sarah watched his blue/green gaze dance.

"As you said…this punishment can only last so long." Her mind hurt it was thinking so fast.

"But…I thought you hated me?" She felt his hand grip hers as he grazed gentle kisses over the back of her hand.

"And I thought we said we were going to put all of that behind us?" Her stomach flipped…she knew this was what her heart ultimately wanted, but she hadn't expected him to speak of it so soon. "I told you that I had you back and didn't plan to let you go. I won't lose again." Something within her flared.

"Is that all marriage to me would be? Proving something?"

"Yes…" he answered quickly. She raised her hand to slap him, but he caught it. "But," he continued, kissing her lightly on the lips for the first time. "Only part of it." Her eyes still drilled into his. "Sarah, I can't tell you that being with me will be easy, but can't you see? That's why is HAS to be you!" Sarah narrowed her eyes at him.

"Why so I can be your whipping post? No thanks!" His laughter didn't help her mood.

"No, my stubborn, stubborn Sarah." He chided. "Because you are the only one who would ever fight back and shut me up." Without warning to even herself, she burst out laughing.

"Well, hell…I don't seem to be doing a very good job of that yet." He helped her back to her feet with a gentle laughter of his own.

"I'm sure you will get the hang of it. Now, no more talk of this. Let's go study and TRY to have a nice day in each other's company." She rolled her eyes and smiled as she accepted his arm.

"We can TRY."

**Cyric** was lounging in a bay window seat reading a book when Medb came back from her meeting. As he turned his face to greet hers, the afternoon sunlight streamed through his long hair. Any other woman would have melted at the sight of him, no matter how much he despised it. Perhaps that was what he found most intriguing about his precarious relationship with Medb.

She cared about no one but herself, never had, never would. That suited him just fine, but…but. And that was what bothered him…that little word, but. While he was content with the fact that she didn't fawn over him, he didn't want her to trade him in like every other lover she had tossed out over the centuries. He wanted to keep this volatile woman for himself.

Cyric was about to greet his tempestuous lover, that was, before he saw the look on her face. It was the look that said, I'm thinking, leave me be. Who else could know her like he did? Better question yet…who would want to? He watched her cross the room in her sullen quietness and knew that the meeting must have gone badly.

Perhaps supporters were drawing back, worrying that the gods would discover her plans? No, he thought suddenly, she was mad because, while people were withdrawing support…it was because of a different reason. They didn't have faith in her. They thought she was going to lose her bet. Oh yes, that had to be it. While any other sane Fae in the Underground would have left her temper alone to simmer, he stood, marked his spot in his book and crossed to her.

Medb was standing at her bedroom window, the windows thrown open to the gusty afternoon breeze. He loved watching her at times like this, when the breeze caught her hair and the sunlight danced over her face. Coming up behind her, Cyric wrapped his arms around her waist and planted his lips to her neck, exposed to him thanks to the breeze. He knew that she was gazing in the direction of the Goblin City and it made the blood boil in his veins.

The woman in his arms made no attempt to return his ardor. He was not going to be tossed out. He was better than that…he wouldn't be amounted to the Queen's scorned whore. For the love of the Gods, he was nobility in his own right! Taking a chance, he let his fingers stray over her furrowed brow; at least it got her attention.

"What is it Cyric?" Her voice was sharp and too the point, like she didn't want to waste the time on him.

"Do you want Jareth so badly milady?" Her eyes narrowed, seldom seen confusion twisting her porcelain features.

"Of course I want him Cyric, without him, my plans all fail." His mind raged at the idea of it. Never before had she wanted a husband and now she wanted Jareth. She, who would pit men against each other in a battle to the death for her hand, only to kill the victor, wanted one now. Medb wanted Jareth to be a part of this battle, for he was sure to win, but this time…this time she would keep the winner. Cyric decided to try his chances and pushed further.

"Why do you need him milady, you never needed a man in your life before." She huffed at his comment and turned her body towards him and out of his grasp, irritation starting to brighten her eyes.

"Cyric I have never WANTED a husband and never will. I don't want to share my power..." she caught his eye and looked at him pointedly. "...and I never will." She walked away from the window and he sneered, at least he accomplished that much. Cyric followed her as she paced the floor before him. "I don't WANT Jareth as a husband; I don't even WANT him to care for me." His pulse quickened when she turned to him, desire…if not truly for him…in her eyes as she stalked up to him. Her fingers splayed out over his tanned chest, exploring taut muscles that she knew well. "I just NEED his powers." A sly smile spread over his face as he allowed her to continue her ministrations.

"But you were so upset when he slighted you for his little human convert." Her eyes flared at the memory as she waved a hand to rid him of the rest of his clothing and hers. Had he not been used to her sudden flares of emotions, he might have gasped her sudden, almost palpable, craving. But since he was, he simply stood there, knowing that his hesitation would only heighten her yearning.

"You know I don't like to be slighted...and especially by one of lower rank than myself. It was his attitude towards me that angered, not him, dear Cyric." She captured his lips with hers biting at his lower lip and smirking. "Why do you ask by the way? Worried I am getting tired of my dark lover?" His mind raged yes, but he merely brought a devious sneer to his face as he gathered her up into his arms.

"How could you tire of me, milady?" She laughed mockingly at him as he laid her back on the bed.

"I always grow tired Cyric...always." He hovered over her, drinking in the scent of her before lowering himself to her, his hands roaming her body.

"Then I will make you forget your always..." he purred as he delved into her, knowing that as soon as she was occupied with another meeting, he would be making a trip to the Goblin Kingdom.

**After** Jareth freed her from his torturous training, she bartered with him for a private bath. She figured that dinner with him was worth an hour alone in the bathtub. She laid her head back on the rim of the bathtub, letting the warm waters soak the tension from her body.

Learning magic had turned out to be a lot tougher on the body than she had thought it would be. She figured that it was all, wave your hand and everything you want appears. Oh how wrong she had been. There was so much more too it. It was mentally and physically exhausting and on more than one occasion she had gotten the brunt of Jareth's irritation.

He hadn't lied when he had told her that he was a short tempered teacher. He had gone off on her many times for not paying attention to what the hell he was saying. It was so hard sometimes for her not to laugh, it wasn't her fault that his accent made it cute sometimes.

Oh Gods, she thought, slapping a hand to her forehead. Had she actually just said Jareth and cute in the same sentence? Man, she must be falling hard for him to think that temper cute. At least, after her twentieth mistake…he seemed to be getting used to it and tried to be less like Gordon Ramsey and more like, well still like Ramsey, but more…Ramsey with a crush on the annoying new cook.

Her lips twitched to think of how exasperated he had looked when she had once again conjured a cup of coffee when he 'specifically asked for tea.' She grimaced. Could she help it if she preferred coffee?

When the bubbles were starting to become sparse, she heard someone clear their throat behind her. She spun around, a crystal in her hand that she couldn't remember conjuring.

"Whoa there, love…what's even in that crystal?" It was only Jareth, she turned her attention to the rogue crystal in her hand and shrugged.

"I don't know. It just kind of happened when you scared me." He knelt down beside the tub and held his hand out.

"May I?" She held the crystal out to him and he gingerly took it from her fingertips. "My, my, my...how inventive darling." He seemed impressed, but she was still in the dark.

"I guess I'm just that good. Now would you mind telling me what the hell I just did…?" He turned the fragile crystal around in his hand, smirking down at her.

"Would you like to see what you did my devilish love?" She pursed her lips.

"I didn't do it on purpose." He didn't seem put off as he continued twirling the mystery crystal in his hand. "And compared to you…you can hardly call ME devilish." She smirked up at him, pleased with herself. His hand reached down and pulled her out of the tub so fast that a gasp of fright escaped her lungs. Now that she was naked and sopping wet against his chest, she could tell that he wasn't angry at her, just keeping her on her toes as always.

"I will show you what you did." His voice caressed her ear before he placed a light kiss there. The crystal in his hand tip out and into the water, which froze the instant it touched the surface. For a moment, her brain couldn't register what had happened.

"So it would have frozen you?" She was so taken aback by the water, that she had forgotten that she was naked, but Jareth remedied that with a wave of his hand.

"Far worse, I fear." Sarah turned to him, a question on the tip of her tongue, but he seemed to know what she was going to ask. "It turns whatever it touches into a living statue." Her hand flew to her mouth, muffling her gasp of amazement. "I don't know how you did it love, but it's very advanced magic." Her hands were shaking as she thought of what could have happened.

"Oh Jareth…if I had thrown it…." He pulled her to him, resting his chin on the top of her head.

"You didn't throw it. No need to worry about it now, love." He pulled her back, a teasing smirk on his face. "But I will be changing your studies now. You will have to learn how to control this much faster than normal." A groan ripped from the very bottom of her soul.

"That means more work." That stupid smirk was still on his face as he nodded. "And more soreness." Sarah watched as he threw a crystal of his own into the tub, returning it to normal.

"Yes, but that just means that after a day of yelling at you…I get to be charming and make it up to you." She sighed and shook her head.

"What am I going to do with you?"

"Dress me." Her face twisted.

"You usually want me to do the opposite, why the change in attitude?" His finger was running along the top of her chemise and was more than a little distracting. Dangerously warm lips lowered to her shoulder and his voice drifted, like a heady scent, to her ears.

"As much fun as that would be right now, our dinner awaits us." Her mouth formed a silent 'o' as he backed away, leaving her insides in pleasing knots. "And you are going to dress us. Use the magic I taught you today to conjure our outfits." She groaned. The spell was easy enough, but she was already so tired.

"Can't you just…"

"No." A short stream of imaginative cursing had him smiling, but not relenting, so she huffed.

"Fine. Where are we having dinner?"

"Does that matter?" So he didn't want to give away his secrets? That was sweet, but she smiled as her brows rose.

"It matters a lot. I need to know how to dress us." She watched with ill repressed glee as he huffed and leaned, angrily, back against the wall, folding his arms over his chest.

"Very well. We are dining on the grand balcony." Her eyes widened at the seemingly romantic gesture. "No that you have ruined my surprise…can you dress us?" Suddenly a thought came to her mind, the laughter was irrepressible as she formed the thought of Jareth's attire in her mind and conjured the crystal.

"Here goes nothing…" she grimaced in apprehension as she tossed the crystal at him. "Ooooo." It was exactly as she had pictured. The white under shirt, dark golden vest, blue jacket, with the golden trim…even the tight black pants were perfect. She chuckled to herself as she conjured up her golden dress, the sleeves hanging from her shoulders. They were Beauty and the Beast brought to life and her cheeks were starting to hurt from the laughter.

"Whatever is wrong with you?" He shrugged into his new garments, getting a feel for them. She placed a hand to her chest, forcing the laughter to calm.

"Nothing, just a little joke. You wouldn't get it…it's a human thing." He cast a derisive glance over at her as he brushed his hands down the blue fabric of the jacket.

"You aren't a human any longer." She didn't even comment, knowing he was right, but not wanting to tell him that…yeah well she used to be. "Joke or not Sarah, I think this is rather dashing."

"It is, I couldn't have put anything less on you." Her hands straightened his lapels as she realized what she had missed. "OH! Our hair. One second." After two quick conjuring spells, Jareth's hair was pulled back with a blue ribbon the color of his jacket and hers was done up as closely as she could remember.

He held out his arm to her and led her up to the grand balcony, which was just that…grand. It was bigger than the balcony in the Disney movie, but this one had a breathtaking view of the Labyrinth. Breath caught in her throat as she looked out at the expanse of it.

"It looks so much more beautiful when you see it from here." Her voice was enraptured as Jareth came up beside her, his hand resting on hers on the railing.

"The Labyrinth is so much more than it appears." She could tell just what he meant, even from here, she could see it continually shifting and changing…almost like it was breathing.

"It's alive," she gasped, her eyes alight with the revelation. She didn't have to see Jareth to know that he had a look of almost parental satisfaction. "I had thought…back then…that it was YOU changing the Labyrinth all the time to mess me up." His laughter flowed over the breeze as he wrapped an arm around her waist.

"Well…some of that WAS me, but most of it…that was the Labyrinth. It is an entity all its own and it pleases me that you see its beauty." She caught his eyes, completely stupefied.

"Who couldn't see the beauty in this?" she asked as she watched a tree appear where none had been, a wall shift ninety degrees, probably trapping something. The Goblin City at the base of the castle had a rustic beauty all its own, in all its ramshackle angles and disorder, it was loved. Realizing that she had lost herself in her visual exploration of her new home, she reeled herself in, surprised to find herself clinging to Jareth's hand.

"Let's eat, love." His smile said all that she knew he wouldn't as he led her to the middle of the balcony. Her brow creased as she noticed there was no table.

"Um Jareth, where are we going to eat?" As he produced a crystal, she snickered. "Oh of course." When he dropped the orb, in its place was a gorgeous little dinner for two set up, complete with the candle in the middle of table.

"Milady…" he cooed, pulling a chair out for her. His attitude was almost too weird for words, but she chuckled and sat. Dinner passed by amicably, the food appearing before them as they were ready for the next course. It was much better than having to deal with snooty waiters. It was when dessert came around that their thoroughly pleasant day started to shift.

Jareth lifted the lid from the last tray to appear that night. In all honesty, Sarah didn't know if she would be able to eat any of it, but he had gone all out that night. She was completely dazzled by this change in him and was delighted with his company…until she looked down. The color drained from her face as she saw what was prepared.

"Peaches…" The look on his face clearly said that he had expected this reaction out of her, but, "Why Jareth…?" He picked one up and held it out to her, hope in his eyes. It was enough to have her brow smoothing, maybe he wasn't up to his old tricks, but she would still be cautious.

"Because…we need to have everything behind us. In your mind, this was my biggest deception wasn't it?" She nodded her head as the tears threatened in her eyes. Suddenly, the reason she was sent to the mental ward came rushing back to her and the tears broke loose.

"Jareth…its so much more than that." He placed the peach back in the bowl, crossing over to take her up in his arms. As he started dancing them to unheard music, he coaxed her.

"Tell me Sarah, tell me…you can trust me now." She beat her forehead lightly on his chest a couple times before sighing. If she couldn't trust him, then she couldn't love him and since she did…she had to find that trust.

"You know that I was forced to forget everything and everyone down here." He didn't speak, only nodded. "What you don't know…and what I didn't remember till just now, was WHY…why they sent me to the psychiatric ward." She felt his arm pull her closer in their silent dance and she rested her head on his shoulder. "It was my stepmothers' birthday. She had a big gala affair in our back yard, all her friends were there." Sarah felt the tears slip over her cheeks to wet the wonderful jacket she had made for him, but couldn't bring herself to lift her head from his chest.

"It was all going so well, I was behaving and _she_ was pleased," the words seethed from her soul as Jareth led her around the balcony in time to music only he could apparently hear. "Finally it came time for Patricia's present. Patricia is one of those people that are only invited out of niceties and she got back at my step mother with what she had hoped to be a cheap present, if not insulting. It was a basket of peaches, my step motherhates peaches."

Jareth's hand tightened on hers as the other tried to soothe by rubbing her back. She was grateful that he didn't speak, but knew that even if he wanted to, he wouldn't. At this point she wouldn't blame him for thinking her a spoiled brat. She might have been placed in an institution, but the fate she had dealt him had been far worse. Those thoughts only brought more blurring tears to her eyes so she went back to her story.

"I don't know what happened. I guess I just freaked out. I threw the basket of peaches across the yard, screaming that they were poisoned and the Goblin King would soon be here. He's coming back! It frightened her guests. The next morning they drove me out to that place and put me in that room. The white room." She nuzzled her face closer to Jareth's chest, convinced that she would never be able to get close enough. "I hate that color now. I always told them that if I stared at the walls close enough…I could see you the way you were the last time I saw you." Sarah jolted as he suddenly stopped their movement, placing his fingers under her chin and forcing her to look at him.

"You spoke of me often then." Confusion…then gut-wrenching laughter stole through her.

"You stay quiet the whole time and the first thing you say is that!? Oh you are an arrogant bastard." His satisfied smirk spoke volumes as he nodded to her.

"Yes, well…it got you to smile." Her laughter halted at his words and she looked up at him thoughtfully.

"Why would you want to make me laugh after that story Jareth? After what I put you through…" Tears choked at the back of her throat. "…after what I did to you. What happened to me seems trivial." Her heart felt like it was being squeezed mercilessly. "You shouldn't give a damn about me." She pulled away from him and went to sit on the balcony. When she looked back at him, he seemed tortuously torn. Yes, he looked angry…as he should, but it was the concern that shone in his eyes that pulled at her heart.

"Just answer me one question." His voice was flat, emotionless in the cooling night air. She lowered her head, sure that this was going to be the end of whatever had blossomed between them that day.

"Why not…?" He remained where he was, his expression never changing.

"I know that you didn't know what you were doing when you sent me away the first time. There was no way you could have known the consequences of your actions, but tell me this…would you do it again?" Her world suddenly brightened as she stood and crossed to him as fast as her dress would allow her. Cold hands took hold of his tortured face as she captured his eyes and tried to pour everything that she was into her own.

"No…Jareth, on my word, if I knew then what I know now…I NEVER would have done that to you." She watched as something broke in his eyes, in the way he held his body, he simply slumped. Gathering him to her, she hugged him till she was sure he would ask her to let up. To her surprise, his own arms wrapped about her, pulling her ever closer. When she opened her eyes, they were standing back in his bed chamber.

"Stay with me tonight." His whisper caught her off guard.

"Where else would I go silly?" When he stepped back from her, their regal wear disintegrated to their night clothes. His eyes were pleading with her…almost as they had the last moment she had seen him, though she hadn't known it then.

"I mean with me, in my bed." Her body stiffened.

"I'm not ready for _that_ Jareth." A wave of his hand and they were in the center of his massive bed.

"It's with me or on the floor again…and this time with no bed." Her jaw dropped. Was he serious…?

"We just had SUCH a nice day!!! Why are you ruining it?" The roguish smile that slid over his face let her know that he was playing with her. Ass….

"I don't want to be difficult…I'm just giving you an ultimatum where I am sure that I will win." Reluctant laughter escaped her and she smacked his chest.

"You're such an asshole…!" It didn't dissuade him in the least, he actually seemed pleased with her comment.

"Yes, but you still haven't answered my question." He conjured up the blanket and pillow he had given her the night before and dangled them before her questioningly. "What will it be my love?" She waved her hand, using her own magic to make the pillow and blanket disappear. It only made his smile spread wider. Again he waved his hand and to her annoyance, removed her chemise. "We will sleep naked."

"Oh no you don't…" she purred, waving her hand and bringing back her chemise. His lower lip jutted out as he pouted.

"Damn, I keep forgetting that you can do that." He mumbled as she crawled under the bedding. "Perhaps I shouldn't teach you any more magic…could be detrimental to the relationship, love."

"The only thing detrimental to this relationship would be you NOT teaching me…" she turned to him with a wicked smile. "…darling. Now, I will sleep with you, but only on the condition of clothing being involved. On my BODY," she added before he could say something wise. She heard him huff and smirked into her pillow.

"Who do you think you are to be making conditions now?" Snuggling down into the warmth of the bed, she answered him.

"The woman that you say you love…" She heard him slap his hand down on the blanket before he shifted below the bedding behind her. In less than a moment she felt his heat behind her and his breath on her ear.

"You had to play that card didn't you?" Again, she smiled into her pillow, content with the feeling of his body curved to hers.

"Mhmm…now let's get some sleep, we are going to walk around the Labyrinth tomorrow." She knew that he wouldn't agree…he would never let her think that she was in control and she smiled as she heard his answer.

"We'll see."

**(A/N: Another chapter down and by far the longest one yet. Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Look forward to seeing some more familiar faces next chapter. Didn't think I would write a Laby fic and not have all her friends know she's there did you!? LOL Well, I would like to thank those who read and reviewed my last chapter: darklady26, Kerichi, kitsamuels, notwritten and Solea! **

**You guys are all so awesome and thanks for all the wonderful reviews! Hopefully I continue to please you all!)**


	11. Trips Down Memory Lane

**Disclaimer: I believe that we ALL know by now that none of this (save for original characters) belongs to me. Jim Henson, Brian Froud, etc…get all the props for the wonderful and original world of The Labyrinth that we all know and love! Now, I hope that you all enjoy my attempt at a sequel that we all would have loved!**

CHAPTER 11

Something soft and silky tickled his nose. Jareth groaned at being woken up in such a perverse manner, but the realized there was also something warm and succulent pressed against him. Opening his eyes to the sight of Sarah curled up against him was a rare delight that he decided he would indulge in for as long as he walked the Underground.

Locating the offending strands of hair that had woken him up, he brushed them out of his face before lowering his touch to the softness of her sleep flushed cheek. 'Well, at least in sleep she seems to fully trust me. That's better than nothing…for now,' he thought to himself as his eyes danced over the sight of her. She looked so innocent and malleable when she was asleep. While she was, of course, innocent even when she was awake as well, he doubted he would ever find anyone that would call her malleable.

He was amazed as he looked back on their day together. It was the first time since she had called him out of that oppressive Darkness that he had spent a whole day without it clawing at the back of his mind. His hand reached out softly to trace fingertips over the delicate skin of the small hand resting on his chest. She was saving him, no doubt was left in his mind about that. The only questions grating at him now were, would his salvation from the Darkness last and how long the gods were planning on making this oppressive slavery punishment last!? He couldn't very well make a known slave his wife now could he? Could he?

Jareth's thoughts were distracted as he felt her stirring in his arms only making him pull her all the closer to his body. A morning yawn broke free from her as he felt her muscles stretch out the night's stiffness. The bedding wrinkled as her body writhed, unbeknownst to Sarah, against his body. Her magic filled the air around him, intoxicating him with it potency. Oh, this deceptive woman next to him would be his undoing….

When she finally became aware of her surroundings, he felt her newly refreshed muscles go rigid. He heard her small grunt of mortification before she looked up at him, her bottom lip caught between her lips. His mind couldn't stop itself from wondering what that wonderfully plump lip might taste like.

"Sorry Jareth," she apologized as she tried to shy away from him. "I guess I shifted in my sleep." His arm tightened around her, not letting her sidle away from him, something feral within him not wanting any distance between their skins. He caught her eyes, wanting to possess her, mind, body and soul. Their magic radiated from their cores, trying to find its match and sizzling in the air between them when it did. Jareth shifted, propping himself up on a forearm so he could gaze down at the magnificent creature before him.

"Do you really think it bothered me overmuch?" He teased, trailing his free hand through her mussed hair. Her creamy...and very exposed…shoulders shrugged. "Your vocal ability is obviously broken at the moment. Do let me take advantage of this rare pleasure." Her eyes narrowed and her lips pursed perfectly. He lowered his head and captured those pouting, rosy lips in a kiss as his fingers trailed from his grasp behind her neck, across her shoulders to the thin strap of her chemise.

As he lowered the strap down her shoulder, his kisses roamed the path his hand had just taken before his teeth nipped lightly at her shoulder, eliciting a low moan from Sarah that fueled his passion. His head jerked up to catch her eyes, gone glossy from passion she didn't know how to decipher.

"Do you trust me Sarah?" Those glossy eyes, the color of emeralds when she was aroused he noticed, were bewildered for but a moment. Her body tensed slightly, but she did not resist him as she nodded. There was no fear in her eyes, he noticed with a fevered passion, only the confused elation for the desire and passion that his touch elicited. Again, her silken mouth, which he knew now to taste of a sweet forbidden wine, moved, but gave no sound. "I will never hurt you…" he whispered to her as his lips lowered to hers once again, her muted moan signaling a break in whatever part of her that had been fighting this even the slightest bit.

To his elation, her body responded to his every touch and she seemed to come alive under his delicate attention. His hand grew bold and slide slowly down the silk covered curves of her body till he found the hem of her chemise. As he ran his hand under the silken material, a low sigh escaped the lips of the unwitting temptress below him. Testing his luck even further, his hand slowly explored its way up the supple skin of her thigh on his way to her abdomen. Shock coursed through them both when her body arches up to him in silent demand.

His eyes darkened at her blatant, if unconscious, display of desire and his lips crushed to hers, their magic all but catching fire in the air around them. Passion driven hands gripped at the material of her chemise, ready to rip it if need be, to get to the erotic playground of her body. The knock on the door didn't register in his mind until he heard Sarah's voice.

"Jareth…Jareth! Stop!" Confusion and disappointment crossed his face as her hand cupped his cheek. "Someone is here, love." Hearing her say that melted him as he lowered his forehead to hers, cursing under his breath.

"This had better be damn important." Sarah's light laughter raised his mood enough to smile down at her as the intruder knocked again. "Oh you think it's funny do you?" He asked, lifting his head to see her. She nodded with delight, her cheeks still flushed. "I will have you soon enough. It's not like you're going anywhere." She looked wonderfully irritated as one delicate brow rose and her lips pursed delightfully again. He placed one last kiss on them before turning his attention to the door…and the third knock. "Oh for the love of the Gods! Enter!" He shouted as he felt Sarah curl up behind him, trying to hide.

Blix entered, his buggy eyes clearly worried at the tone of his kings' voice. Bowing ungainly before him, the unusually tall goblin sputtered his apologies. "So sorry your majesty, but your mother requested an audience with you and the Lady Sarah." Jareth raised a brow in question. So they were all calling his Sarah a Lady already were they? Perhaps everyone was more taken with her than he had given her credit for.

"We will be in to see mother in an hour." Feeling Sarah cringe behind him, he couldn't help but have some fun with her. He rolled to his back and started to get up, revealing Sarah next to him. "We need to freshen up." The lanky goblin froze, much as Sarah did.

"OH!" The goblin seemed to stumble over his long legs as he started to back out of the room, still bowing his apologies, though a slight smirk was tugging at his lips.

"Oh Blix, no…" Sarah started before Jareth cut her off.

"Very true Sarah. No need to be ashamed Blix." Sarah's eyes flashed to his, temper coming to a boil. "Very good Blix, that will be all." The goblin knew it was his cue to exit and did so with earnest.

"So sorry for the disturbance your majesty," he offered, bowing to Jareth. "And you Lady…" He gave another bow to Sarah, to Jareth's surprise. Goblins only bowed to those they considered royalty or nobility. Very interesting. Once Blix closed the doors behind him, he felt a sharp smack on his back and chuckled merrily. Sarah's sharp tone bit at him, but he was too pleased with his joke to care as he leaned back against the pillows, locking his hands behind his head.

"You let him think something happened!" He let his tone drop to a seductive level as he smiled wickedly over at his…Lady…Sarah.

"Something WOULD have happened had we not been interrupted, Lady Sarah." He finished with a jibe. The insinuation in his voice had its intended effect as he watched Sarah's cheeks flush bright red. Unable to resist temptation, he leaned over and kissed the nape of her neck, whispering throatily up into her ear. "And you were enjoying yourself." He felt her shiver, but she chuckled and pushed him away half-heartedly.

"Arrogant ass…" she chided. He smiled up at her, raven locks tussled from sleep and his hands, cheeks flushed enticingly.

"Shameless hussy…" he teased back, pinching the skin on her inner thigh playfully. She swatted at his hand and he let out a tortured huff of air as her lips pursed oh so invitingly again. "Oh Gods, Sarah…you look good enough to eat when you do that." An enlightened smile spread over her face as those evergreen eyes danced with delight. He placed a hand over his heart and affected a wounded tone. "Love, be gentle. Don't learn all your power over me so fast."

"You are such a pain…" she laughed as she beat him with a pillow. He tugged the pillow from her grasp, effectively pulling her into his arms. Smiling down at her, he kissed her forehead.

"As much fun as this would be, we really DO have to freshen up before seeing my mother, so…" he waved his hand transported them to the tub. When the bath was done, Jareth produced a crystal and tossed it at Sarah, a dress quickly materializing on her body.

"Whoa, a warning would be nice next time!" Jareth watched the irritation get swept away by approval as she inspected the gown he had made for her. It was a creamy, pale yellow dress with a low scoop neckline and a skirt that went down to brush the floor. He had topped it off with a chocolate brown waist cincher and heeled boots to match. Her hair he had done up in a bun with half her hair, the bottom half, free and flowing about her shoulders.

"There is one more thing I need to give you to complete this." With a flick of his hand, a small, comb tiara was resting in his palm. It was not big, merely the same symbol as his pendant, surrounded by sparkling diamonds, with two, twisting, vine columns of diamonds to either side. Sarah's gasp brought a sparkling smile to his.

"Oh Jareth, I couldn't! It wouldn't be right." He ignored her, shifting the comb into place in her bun.

"I told you that you were mine, if not by law yet…you are by my word." A flicker of defiance fired in her eyes and set her jaw, sending a delighted shiver through him. "Do you not wish for everyone to know that I have claimed you, love?" He stared, enthralled, as her eyes narrowed menacingly and her nose flared ever so slightly.

"I am not land to be claimed Jareth! You told me that wasn't what this was all about to you…why must you constantly make me question that?" He dared to reach out and was surprised to be allowed to touch her. Oh, his Sarah wouldn't pull away from him anymore…her spine was too set with steel at the moment. He smiled at her, loving the flush her cheeks gain when he irritated her.

"Because I love getting a rise out of you darling. You look so fetching when you are upset." He pulled her in and kissed her, smiling as she let out a dejected groan.

"I guess I really need to start picking my battles…." The sound of his laughter filled the room as he opened the door for her.

"Shall we my dear?"

**Soft** knocking on her door alerted her that her son and the girl had arrived. She checked one last time in the mirror before letting her magic open the door for her. Her son walked in, all pomp and swagger as always, but what shocked her was the smile on his face. The fact that the smile was echoed on the lips of the woman on his arm was enough to make her drop into the nearest cushion with a smile of her own.

"Hello son," she said after he had sat Sarah down and crossed to hug her. Watching as he went back to sit next to the woman who had blossomed into her Fae form beautifully, her smile deepened.

"What did you want to talk about mother?" Her inspection of Sarah drew her gaze to the subtle, but very powerful statement of a tiara. A small gasp escaped her as she raised a questioning brow to her son. Jareth smirked and waved his hand in the air dismissively. "Oh like you didn't know I would do it eventually."

"I certainly knew, but your haste amuses me. What do you think of it dear?" She asks turning to Sarah. She was pleased when the girl showed no weakness, merely answered her question outright. A Queen couldn't show weakness.

"Everyone else seems to have expected it, but I for one would have thought I would've been thrown in the dungeons before he offered it all to me again." The intriguing girl fixed her gaze on Maesia's son, a sad smirk on her face that tugged at her heart. "You ask what I think of it and last night I would have told you that I didn't think I deserved it at all. I don't know if I truly believe that I do yet, but DO I know…" Maesia watched with a burgeoning hope as Sarah's smile turned to one of ill repressed ardor. "That I wouldn't turn it down for the world." Maesia's focus drifted between Sarah and Jareth, a slow smile parting her lips.

"My, my, my you two seem to be getting along much better now." Jareth tore his gaze from Sarah's and turned to his mother.

"Better than before yes, but I expect there will always be fights between the two of us. It would be a rather boring life without them." Maesia flinched at the thought of fights being missed before Jareth crossed to her, taking her up in a hug that brought tears to her eyes…oh was her boy truly back to himself? "I won't treat her as father treated you." The cold dread she had felt subsided, but she couldn't keep herself from thinking of the Darkness that was clawing in her son.

"But Jareth…the Dar…"

"Don't worry mother." She was confused as he cut her off, then, as she looked at Sarah, she realized why. Her eyes narrowed, accusing him of not telling Sarah…his own eyes clearly acknowledging the fact. She looked back at a very confused Sarah, elated and sympathetic for the girl who would have to deal with her capricious son for life now. Jareth leaned down as she sighed, in the guise of hugging her again and whispered to her. "She has nearly fought it out of me mother. I'm trying to be better for her…and for you. I don't want to become father." The strangle hold on her heart eased at his words.

"I know, my son." She choked out against the threatening tears. "You are a far better man than your father could have ever hoped to be." She saw the look of surprise cross Sarah's face and beckoned the girl to come sit with her on the settee. "It's true Sarah. As wicked as my pest of a son has been to you in the past," she began with a loving smirk to her son. "…his father was much, MUCH worse." It moved her when Sarah's hand covered hers without a thought. Such a lovely girl…so exactly what Jareth AND the kingdom needed.

"What did he do?" She watched Jareth's back straighten and his face set with anger as it always did at the mention of his father.

"Well, this is definitely not what I called you two in for, but I suppose I could tell you, Sarah. If it's ok with you, son?"

Jareth nodded stiffly as he stood, crossing swiftly to the window. She could sense that Sarah wanted to go to him, but she held the girl where she was. There was no fouler mood for Jareth than when he was thinking of his father. With some effort, she started speaking of her late husband.

"You see Sarah, the Labyrinth is always a reflection of who leads it. As you must have seen for yourself by now, the Labyrinth isn't just a maze." She was pleased when Sarah softened at the mention of the Labyrinth.

"Yes, I know…it's a live, ever changing thing. Jareth showed me last night. It was amazing." Maesia nodded knowingly.

"Under Jareth's rule, the Labyrinth and the kingdom have prospered, but under my husband's rule…" Jareth scoffed from the window.

"Rule!? Try his dictatorship. No one can call what he ran a kingdom." Maesia bit her lower lip, promising herself to be more careful with her words. Sarah sat silent next to her, as if knowing to remain silent was the best thing.

"Jareth is right…under my husband's hand, this kingdom and the Labyrinth with it, fell into dark times. There was a great and terrible war when Jareth was but a young man, barely into adulthood. No one had ever attempted to besiege the Goblin Kingdom before, because the Labyrinth would always protect its rulers, but not this time." She watched the girl fall into the tale, as if it was a part of her now and perhaps, Maesia thought, with a glance over at Jareth…perhaps now it was.

"What happened?" Sarah wasn't asking her…but beseeching Jareth, who turned to her from the window.

"What happened…?" Maesia could see the torrent of emotions swirling through her son as he crossed back to them. "My father sent every unwilling citizen of this kingdom out, untrained and unfit for battle, to fight the invaders. More innocent creatures and people died that day than anyone would like to remember." Maesia watched, completely taken aback, as Sarah stood and crossed to her tempestuous son.

"Who invaded…?" She watched their eyes meet and felt a powerful surge of magic…no…magics. Staring at the girl who now reached a hand out to cup her sons face, she knew that there was far more to all of this than the Gods had told her. "Who did it Jareth…?" Sarah's voice seemed to bring them both back to their senses.

"Medb…" Sarah gasped at that. "…but she never confessed to it. She said that it was a dissenting band of warriors from her guard." The blind fury that crossed Sarah's face took Maesia and her son off guard.

"How could she have gotten away with that!?" Maesia sat and watched in wonder as the smile took over the face of her son, which had been a playground for the Darkness but moments before. It was the most shocking thing that Maesia had ever seen. Her son wrapped his arms around Sarah and lowered his forehead to hers. It was an endearing gesture that tugged at a mother's heart.

"She got away with it because she is a goddess. However black sheep she might be, she is still a goddess and they take rank over us Fae in everything." Maesia ached to tell Sarah of what was happening, but knew that it would only anger Jareth. He would tell her when he thought it was time.

"It's still not fair." Hearing Jareth laugh again was all the joy she needed in her day.

"No its not, my love, but it's the way it is down here. If it makes you feel any better, my father was killed when the warriors stormed the castle." Sarah looked up at him with a strange gleam to her eyes, it did please her, but she wouldn't say it. The girl was so like herself, it shocked Maesia.

"Why would it please me?" Her son kissed the girl's forehead and rested his chin on top of her head.

"Because it pleases me." Oh what a conceited soul her son was, but the answer seemed to please his Chosen.

"You took over that very day didn't you?" Sarah asked, admiration in her voice. Jareth nodded into her hair. "Of course you did." Maesia stood and crossed to the couple, for that was truly what they were now.

"He did and the kingdom has never been more prosperous. The Labyrinth itself has never been so beautiful." She watched Sarah's face twist and knew what she was thinking of. "The bog…?"

"Yes…" Sarah admitted with a chuckle.

"Well, that was one of Jareth's more admirable creations." She wrinkled her nose at her son, who had a pleased grin on his face. Sarah, on the other hand, turned to him, disgusted.

"YOU!? You MADE that? On purpose!?" Jareth turned to her, the smile gone, replaced with grim seriousness.

"I made it as a reminder to those who would stand against me. That is where all the invaders were executed and where all those who appose me are sent." Sarah grimaced at the thought of it. "Don't worry, love…I will leave that off the list of things for us to see today." Maesia smiled knowingly at Sarah's shocked confusion.

"Taking a tour of the kingdom with your Chosen today Jareth?" He nodded and smiled as he crossed to her. "Well then, I am afraid I have taken too much of your time already." Sarah seemed mortified.

"Oh Maesia, you didn't take any time. I am glad you called us in this morning."

"Yes, it saved her from my attentions." Maesia slapped her son's arm as Sarah turned a deep red. "What was that for?" After a motherly kiss on the cheek, she moved to Sarah.

"For being a pest." His laughter followed her as she wrapped her arms around Sarah. "You will learn how to deal with him darling. Till then, you come to me if he bothers you." The girl seemed unsure of her attentions. Had the girl been so alone in the Aboveground that she didn't even know motherly affection when she saw it? Poor thing, Maesia thought and vowed to correct that oversight.

"Thank you Maesia." Sarah managed before Jareth captured her arm.

"Thank you for the company mother, we must be off, but what do you say to a dinner for three tonight?" She smiled at the retreating form of her son.

"I say you better be on time!" His laughter was his only response, but she knew that he would be on time to the second. He always was. She smiled to herself, pleased at the lack of animosity between the two, but her happiness was short lived as Morrigan materialized on her settee.

"They didn't speak their love…though they both know it is there." Maesia shook her head.

"I know, they are both as stubborn as a drunken goblin." Morrigan chuckled at the visual that supplied.

"Yes, but a drunken goblin won't risk a kingdom or the whole of the Underground. Watch them Maesia, watch them carefully and help where you can." Morrigan dissipated and Maesia crossed to the window, watching Jareth and Sarah heading out to the Labyrinth with a shake of her head.

"Stubborn children"

**Heading** back into the mind boggling depths of the Labyrinth was a surreal feeling. Everything was as she remembered it and yet completely different. Barriers that had twined and strained to ensnare her seemed to bow and shy out of the way as she walked through it with Jareth. She knew that her reaction to everything around her was extremely amusing to him, but she let him have his fun.

"How can something that terrified me back then, fill me with such rapt wonder now?" Not expecting an answer, she was shocked when Jareth stopped and looked thoughtful. When the slow, silky smile captured his face, she wanted to smack him…she knew what he was going to say.

"It is beautiful because now you see it with me." A bark of laughter passed her lips.

"Oh yes, Jareth, YOU make everything so much more beautiful!" She kept laughing, though inside she realized that he jest had quite a root in truth. From the grinning arrogance in his eyes, he knew it too. "So when are you going to let me see my friends?"

She had been trying to avoid asking him, but after walking an hour through the Labyrinth, he hadn't said a word about them and she was getting anxious. From his silence, Jareth had been hoping to avoid it too, but she was sure that he would have different reasoning.

"Must we?" Was his only strained answer. When she nodded he groaned, but acquiesced. "Very well," he started, but a sly grin tugged at the corner of his mouth. Sarah inwardly groaned, he was up to something. "But YOU have to find them." Her brows knit in frustration.

"How the hell am I going to find them?" He produced a crystal that had her face swimming over its surface.

"With a spying crystal." This time, her whole body slouched.

"You mean you are going to make me learn more magic…and fast." His elegant fingers closed around the frail crystal, popping it, her image shattering.

"I don't know if I want to teach such an unwilling student." He threw his arms up in air with a sigh. "Oh well, I guess we just go home then." She grabbed his arm quickly, willing to play along with him if it meant she could see her friends.

"Oh ok…you win this time." He spent half an hour teaching her the movements and spell to conjure the spying crystal.

"It is easier to start with people or things that you have strong feelings for. Why don't you try a quick one with something or some ONE that you, I don't know…love?" She thought of bringing up a crystal to see Toby, but knew that it would only shatter Jareth's ego at this point. Toby could wait till later if she got this all right. With a controlled flick of her wrist and a few concentrated thoughts, there was a crystal bubble in her hand with a blurry image of Jareth in it.

He examined the shimmering crystal in her hand. "You didn't say the words right, but its close enough. Not bad for a first try." He puffed out his chest. "Of course, you probably would have failed if you didn't love me so much." Her hand slapped against the puffed out chest as she laughed.

"Your ego is astounding!" He pulled her to him, placing a soft kiss on the tip of her nose.

"But I don't hear you denying it." Sarah shrugged nonchalantly, but indeed, didn't counter. What neither of them knew was that that wasn't enough for the Gods needs. They had to SAY it to each other. Practice made perfect as she continued trying over and over again until she was even able to get a decent view of Maesia. She heard Jareth's exasperated sigh. Sure it had taken her two hours to get it down, but damn it this was all new to her.

"I'm so tired now Jareth…this was a lot harder than conjuring you a cup of tea."

"You never produced a cup of tea," he scoffed, though his fingers found their way to her temples and were doing a magical job…haha…of making her feel better. "Now, feel better?" Strangely she did. When she turned to question him, he merely smirked arrogantly at her. "You will learn that later. Now…locate your friends, one at a time."

Sarah brought the image of the giant Ludo to her mind, focusing on it as hard as she could before concentrating on the words and hand motions to bring forth the spy crystal. When she opened her eyes, she was pleased to see Jareth smiling at her. Oh he was proud. The scene in the crystal showed Ludo walking through a dense forest.

"Very good Sarah, its clear and I will be able to get a lock on him from this." From the tone of his voice, she assumed that he hadn't expected to be able to do that. She gave him a smug smile as he lifted his arm in an elegant gesture. Always one to keep her on her toes, he leaned over and captured her lips in a bone melting kiss, grinning superciliously as he pulled back. "One last kiss before we aren't so wonderfully alone anymore."

"Yeah…" was all her mind could come up with after that kiss. The next moment, he waved his hand and a very perplexed Ludo appeared before him. Jareth was the first one that the giant hairy monster caught sight of and he bellowed. Sarah knew that the rocks wouldn't be far off if she didn't intervene. Jareth certainly wouldn't, he looked quite uninterested in Ludo's ranting. "LUDO! It's Sarah!" The massive, horned head spun around at the sound of her voice, a grotesque and yet somehow sweet smile replacing the fear of a moment before.

"Sawah!" he roared delightedly as he lumbered over to her. "Sawah back! Sawah friend!" When the beast got close to her, she thought he would take her in a hug, but was shocked when he stopped in his tracks, an almost comical look of dread on his face. "Sawah…his…?"

"What…?" Then she knew what her friend was looking at, the tiara. Jareth intervened, keeping the moment from being even more awkward. Though Sarah doubted it would be that easy to side step once Sir Didymus and Hoggle got there. Sarah conjured up a crystal, looking for Sir Didymus. When the crystal appeared in her hand, Ludo's misshapen face contorted with confusion. A second later, after Jareth looked into the crystal, Sir Didymus, astride Ambrosious, appeared in the glade before them.

"I say, what is this?" The little fox brandished his staff before him. "I will fight you all to the dea…"

"Brother!" Ludo cried as he spied his furry little friend.

"Ludo? What in heavens art thou doing here? And with yon Goblin King as thou company?" Jareth smiled at the little fox mockingly and bowed elaborately, Sarah couldn't help the smile that pulled at her lips.

"I come bearing gifts…" Jareth spoke kindly to Sarah's surprise. "Well, one big present anyways." He motioned to Sarah and the little fox finally noticed her.

"Fair maiden! Is that really the fair Sarah?" Sarah smiled, happy that the fox was too short to see her tiara. At least she could hold the questions till Hoggle got here.

"It is. Now hold on one moment while I find Hoggle." The little fox had noticed Jareth halfway through her talking.

"What is he doing here?" Jareth motioned around him with his arms.

"It IS my kingdom, I can be where I wish." Didymus nodded in agreement, but kept himself and Ambrosious between her and Jareth, she noticed with a grin to Jareth.

"I meant it Didymus, I will explain all after I find Hoggle." Straightening in his saddle with purpose, Sir Didymus raised his staff again.

"Then let us be off! He shant be overly difficult to come across." Sarah kneeled before Didymus, her hands outstretched to stop him.

"No, no Didymus we aren't going to find him that way." Bewilderment took over furry features and Sarah looked over at Jareth as she concentrated on making the next spy crystal. "I have to find him this way." The crystal appeared in her hand, frightening the fox out of his seat. As he scrambled back up he looked up at her with a mixture of shock and disapproval that didn't settle well with Sarah.

"Let's see where Hedgewart is shall we?" Jareth stepped in again, to Sarah's relief. In but a moment, Hoggle was before them, his "fairy pesticide" in hand.

"Fourty-Se…hey!"

"Hoggle!" The gnarled dwarf spun around at the sound of her voice.

"Missy…?!" Hoggle's face lit as he spotted Sarah and she held her arms out to him. "Oh Missy, I'm so happy y're back. I'd thought somethin terrible had happened to yeh." She kneeled and pulled him into a hug when he noticed Jareth, but since the Goblin King was just leaning against a rock brooding, he let him be for the moment.

"No, I just forgot everything…" When his face looked hurt she amended, "Not by choice Hoggle. People TOOK my memory." In a rare show of bravery, Hoggle turned to Jareth.

"You took them didn't you? You didn't want her to remember us if you couldn't have her." Jareth stared at the dwarf with what Sarah deciphered as amusement and irritation, but once Hoggle was done, Jareth's laughter rang through the trees.

"Come, come Hogbrain…why so venom on me? I could have made her forget, yes, but I didn't." His eyes darkened a bit as he thought about it, settling his mismatched gaze on Sarah to make her believe. "I couldn't have." Her eyes told him that she knew and he calmed, his eyes cooling back to their bored blue/green stare.

"Hoggle…he has been nothing but nice to me," she lied slightly through her teeth. Hoggle let his gaze come back to Sarah, who was kneeling before him and he gasped, stumbling backwards towards his other two friends, his big eyes pools of alarm and dismay. Knowing what he had spotted, Sarah sighed.

"Guys, can you all let me explain what is going on?" They all sat back warily, Didymus on Ludo's shoulder, Hoggle by the monsters enormous, hairy leg. Sarah started telling them all that had passed since they had last seen each other. The psych ward (even if they didn't fully understand what that meant), remembering everything and calling on Jareth (leaving out the whole slave mess…and Eireach), her surprising magic abilities and, most importantly, how she and Jareth had made up. There must have been something in her eyes that betrayed her feelings and the same for Jareth, because Sir Didymus' startled voice piped up.

"Fair maiden, be'est there now love 'tween you and yon sworn enemy?" Sarah flushed, but nodded. Hoggle looked dejected as he pushed dirt around with a stubby finger.

"Guess that explains the jewels on your head." She hated the way that they were looking at her. They had to understand after all she told them!? The tears fought to free themselves and she sat on the ground, defeated. This, apparently, did not sit well with Jareth, for he stormed over.

"So you would all scorn her? Simply for loving me?" He reached down, pulling her up by an arm and leaning to see her face that she tried desperately to keep hidden. "Great friends…" he mumbled, just loud enough for them to hear. The scene shocked her friends and Ludo was up in an instant.

"Sawah friend!" She lifted her tear stained face lifted to look over at her friends, who now just looked guilty instead of wary of her. Sir Didymus was the next to offer his apologies.

"Tis true, we were fools to treat our fair maiden so," he offered, twisting his hat in his tiny hands. "Can thou forgive three foolish naives?" Sarah rushed into the open arms of her gigantic friend, Didymus dropping from his shoulder to his arm so he could hug her as well.

"Of course I can…I'm still me guys." She said, looking up at them. "I will always be me." Feeling a tug on her dress she turned to see Hoggle, head down, body slouched.

"I'm sorry Sarah…wasn't right to treat yeh like that." Kneeling in front of her great friend, she wrapped her arms around him, for some reason it made Jareth's magic flare around them. She lifted her eyes to look at Jareth, he didn't look pleased that she was hugging Hoggle…but why? Standing, she looked over at the silent form of Jareth.

"How long can we stay?" His stance and his magic calmed as soon as her arms released Hoggle. So he definitely had something against her friend.

"We must be back to the castle in time for dinner."

"Of course, I wouldn't dream of making us late for dinner." She walked over to Jareth, hugging him, to the shock of her friends. "Thank you, Jareth…thank you for bringing me out here today." For a bigger shock to her friends, she lifted her lips and kissed his lips gently, pulling back with a smile for his stunned expression.

"Of course, love." He used his endearment with a sharp tone of pride, his gaze revealing that he was pleased that she would show her love in front of her friends. She knew he hadn't expected her to.

The next few hours were filled with lively conversation about what all of her friends had been doing since she had left. Ludo had taken up residence in the forest beyond the knocking doors, liking it better than the hedge maze where he had been beaten. Didymus was back at his post, with a brand new…and safer…bridge to guard. Hoggle, with a shuffle of his feet, admitted that he was still on the same duty that he had been when Sarah had come through. They laughed and enjoyed each other's company till the sun started setting beyond the trees of their grove.

Ludo and Sir Didymus bid their farewells and after many hugs, departed into the trees. Hoggle, on the other hand, pulled her to the side, away from Jareth's ears.

"Missy…I know that yeh say yeh love him, but please promise me tha' yeh'll be careful. Remain always on yer guard, he might still be playin games with yeh somehow." Before Sarah could reassure him, Jareth appeared beside them, his eyes distrusting.

"What is this all about Hogwart?" Hoggle saw the warning the Goblin King's eyes and stammered.

"N-n-nothin yer Majesty." Jareth smiled, but not convincingly enough for Sarah.

"Oh, Hogwart, calm yourself down." With that, Hoggle looked over at Sarah, his face as drawn as when he had given her the peach.

"G'bye Sarah. See yeh later." She nodded, unable to find a way to make Hoggle feel better…for she didn't know what was wrong. Watching him hobble off, her brows knotted with concern, she knew that something had passed between him and Jareth that would always keep her in the middle of an unknown battle. Unless she found out what the battle was about and she was determined to do just that.

She took Jareth's arm when he offered it and they started on their way back to the castle. He was finally in a pleasant mood again and only a little part of her was sad that she was about to ruin it.

"Today was amazing, thank you again." She could almost feel him preen beside her.

"You're welcome, love. They can come see you whenever they wish in the castle." He turned to her with a devilish grin. "As long as you aren't otherwise occupied." She smacked his arm playfully.

"Really Jareth…" she admonished with a smile.

"I meant with many other things than just me, love. You are going to become a rather important part of my kingdom and you won't always have time for guests." The thought of being Queen frightened her.

"How can you trust me with something like that…? I know nothing of being a Queen, let alone having to act like one…convincingly." His laughter was soul deep and a beautiful sound.

"You will learn my love. I will have my mother teach you." Sarah calmed, she would be in fine hands then, but she had to get back on track. She wanted to know what was between Hoggle and Jareth that made the volatile man beside her prickle at his very presence.

"So Ludo, Didymus and…" she paused slightly, "…Hoggle can visit." As she had predicted, he tensed at the mention of the dwarf. "Jareth, why don't you like Hoggle?" Jareth rolled his eyes and waved a hand in the air to dismiss the question.

"I don't know what you are talking about." She wasn't about to let him get away with this. There was something going on behind those mismatched eyes and she was going to find out.

"Yes you do. You are so mean and cold to him." Blocking the path in front of him, she placed a hand on his chest to keep him from walk around her. "Tell me Jareth." His shoulders slumped slightly as he sighed, catching her gaze pleadingly. Her stance wavered, she hadn't expected this, she had expected, even wanted, his anger to boil.

"You aren't going to like it…can't we just move on and have a nice day?" She shook her head, not budging. His reaction might have thrown her, but she still wanted the answers she sought.

"Tell me Jareth." With a great sigh he gave in.

"When I gave him the peach to give to you…I threatened him a little." Sarah felt her temper rising, but knew to hold it till she knew the whole story.

"You're right I don't like it." She took a slow step closer to him. "What is your definition of 'a little," she questioned.

"I told him if he didn't give you that peach that I would tip him straight into the bog of eternal stench." She didn't think that was it and prodded him relentlessly for more.

"You threatened to send him to the place where people the caliber of those invading warriors were killed? Was he that disturbing to your plans Jareth!? What else…? Because that couldn't possibly be it." He grimaced at the fact that she had caught him.

"I told him if you ever kissed him that I would make him a prince…?" He tried to smile, but she drilled him with her gaze. "Ok, ok…I said I would make him Prince of the Land of Stench."

"THAT'S why we ended up there!? Because I kissed his cheek when he saved me from the Fireys?!" Her temper was hot now, how absolutely pig headed could this man be? She wanted to find a blunt object to beat him over the head with. "Oh Jareth! Why did you have to be so mean to him…and actually send us there!?" She was enraged that he actually had the gall to smile at her.

"Sarah…hasn't it sunk into your stubborn head yet that I was in love?" Her anger faltered. Well what the hell was she supposed to do with that? "I should have been the first to get your kiss, but it was that repulsive little dwarf! Of course I was mad." He actually looked upset at the fact that she had kissed Hoggle first. How was she supposed to be mad at him when he wouldn't be mad back? She sighed at him

"You really need to find more constructive outlets for your anger. That wasn't very fair to Hoggle, Jareth." She stepped up to him, cupping his cheek. "Are you STILL jealous of him?" His eyes flashed, but he didn't speak, he didn't have to. "Oh Jareth…I may have kissed his cheek, but have I ever kissed him the way I kiss you?" The dangerous glint in his eyes receded and he started to look guilty.

"No." His answer was stiff and it made her smile.

"Then let it go…" she whispered, leaning in to brush her lips over his. "That is for you," she kissed him again. "And always will be." His forehead tilted to rest on hers, an endearing gesture that was becoming common between them, it made her smile. "You have my love…not Hoggle." She felt him sigh in front of her.

"And you have mine." They were startled as an angry swirl of magic burst next to them and promptly vanished. Her eyes sought Jareth's.

"What the hell was that?" His eyes searched around them, but he found nothing as he pulled her into his arms.

"I don't know, but we aren't going to waste anymore time walking." With but a thought, they vanished from the Labyrinth.

**Morrigan** had followed them that day, hoping for something. Her mind raged as she thought back to how many times they could have said it to each other.

"I love you! Is that so damn hard to say!?" She fell down into a chair by the viewing ball. The two were having dinner with Maesia. It was pleasant enough, making plans to teach Sarah how to act and hold herself as a Queen, but why the hells couldn't those two just SAY that they loved each other!?

They said everything BUT the three little words that would break Medb's hold on Jareth. Her fingers bunched in wild red hair as she her fury became almost palpable around her. She was glad she was alone, for she knew in this state, she would only offend anyone in reach. Suddenly, she wished that stupid twit of a goddess, Medb, where there. Morrigan would gladly snap that imbecile in two!

"Damn Medb and her stupid clause!!" Morrigan ranted as she slammed a fist on the nearest surface, leaving a dent she knew she would have to fix later. Resting her eyes reluctantly back on the orb, she sighed. They had never thought that getting two people to say 'I love you' would be so damn difficult.

**(A/N: Hope you all enjoy the chapter! It was a long one, longest yet…with inspiration ranging from lines from Princess Bride, to Legend to reader inspirations! I would love to thank all those who inspired me to write this chapter: darklady26 (you are an amazing inspiration hun, thank you for being an amazing friend!), harleyteen, Kerichi (always an outstanding fount of inspiration and drive…I can never thank you enough!), kitsamuels, notwritten and saz89!**

**Thank you all so much for keeping me in happy land with my reviews!)**


	12. Lessons in Love PART 1

**Disclaimer****: I own nothing of the world created by all the great minds behind the Labyrinth. I merely use the setting as the background for my own story. Though now, most of what is in the story does now belong to me, anything that you recognize from the movie most assuredly does not.**

**Sorry this took so long, real life is a bitch sometimes.**

**Dinner** was served in his mother's crimson bedecked room, silver and crystal clinking gently as the dimming sunlight splayed from their surfaces, casting twinkling beams of light around the room. One glittering crystal champagne flute was raised to amused lips.

Jareth was pleased as he watched his mother and his Chosen chatting together, all bright smiles and infectious laughter. His mismatched eyes sparkled over the rim of the flute, almost shaming the crystal's beauty, as he studied the two women who meant the most to him in the world.

His mother's fiery, unbridled beauty was so in place in this room, structured just for her, but his Sarah he knew, would be more suited in a room of soft earth tones. What he found most striking about the women was the fact that their beauty was such an opposite of their personalities. Sarah wouldn't be the overly painted queen that his mother had been.

Jareth shifted uncomfortably in his chair, a plush red leather affair that he had no taste for, instantly feeling regret for his thoughts. He loved his mother unwaveringly, she was smart, brilliant and beautiful, but no one would or could deny that, as far as being a queen was being concerned, she was the definition of little more than a trophy. She had meant as much to his father as one of those little trinkets of jewelry he had loved so.

Jareth was determined never to treat Sarah like that…again, he thought with a slight grimace. It was true that he hadn't started off on the right foot with her. As he rested his champagne flute on the intricately carved cherry wood table, he thought more about Sarah. What thrilled him the most, and yet still bothered him on some level, was the fact that he KNEW Sarah wouldn't be the placating queen his mother had been.

No, he thought with another lopsided grin, his Sarah would be at his right hand or demand to be. 'If I want her to be or not,' his mind chuckled. But it was true that Sarah would need lessons in how to at least act like the queen his mother had been. Even if Sarah wouldn't allow herself to be an adornment, she still needed to act like she knew how.

"Mother," Jareth began without ceremony. He hadn't realized how serious he sounded until the gentle feminine laughter had halted and two questioning gazes were caught to his. "Sarah is going to need lessons." A mischievous grin spread over his mother's delicate features.

"My dear son…she needs a lesson that you are unable to teach her your magnanimous self?" If she had been any other person in the Underground, he would have magicked her to next week, but since she was his mother…Jareth smirked.

"She needs lessons on being and conducting herself as a queen." Maesia nodded absently as her gaze raked over Sarah, who was suddenly very stiff and uncomfortable.

"Of course she does Jareth, but you can't expect that to be an easy job." At Sarah's indignant huff, his mother rested a hand on Sarah's leg. "I didn't mean you are a cave dweller, Sarah. You simply don't know Fae ways and will have to learn." Jareth watched something change on his mother's face and was weary…what did she know? "Though it will be easier…for everyone…knowing that she has magic." Jareth stood up, crossing to Sarah, who had gone pale with shock.

"How did you know that mother?" He asked as his hands gripped Sarah's shoulders, but she didn't look anything more than stunned that his mother knew.

"Please, Jareth, when you two were with me this morning, your powers were all but palpable." She offered with an impatient, yet elegant, wave of her hand. "And before you even bother to tell me…of course I won't tell anyone of it." That ever moving hand of hers rested on her chest this time. "Can you even imagine how mad Medb would be if she found out something like that?"

"Why would Medb care?" Sarah asked slowly…Jareth winced.

"Never mind about that twit, Sarah," his mother said quickly, grabbing Sarah's hands and smiling to disarm her. It was a move that Jareth would have to thank his mother for later. Sarah couldn't know about anything that was going on…not yet anyways. He wasn't sure how she would take information like that. "So…" his mother went on as he settled back in his chair. "What DO you know about being a queen my dear?" It was Sarah's turn to wince as Jareth's mother brought her wine to her lips.

"The only thing I know about the word Queen and what goes with it is that it was the name of an awesome band Aboveground and that I would wear a crown…." Jareth's smile was slow as his head fell back with soft laughter. His mother was laughing too, but for a different reason, she thought that Sarah was actually joking and choked on her wine when she realized that she wasn't. With a shocked hand on her chest and wide eyes, Maesia looked over Sarah again.

"Oh dear…" was all his mother could come up with. Sarah gave her a half smile and laid a hand on her silk covered leg.

"I know…." His mother promised to start her lessons the very next day. She was discussing what they were going to learn when an impatient knock sounded on the door.

"Enter," Jareth called, perturbed that their dinner had been interrupted, but disturbed when he saw that it was Erina and Jeaule. The ever adamant Erina bowed to him in haste, exuding that sexual aura she seemed to fix in place whenever she was around him. Jeaule bowed elegantly next to her, silent and sweet next to her overpowering sister. "What is it Jeaule?" he asked the quiet sister, knowing it would perturb Erina. He never liked having to talk to the girl and he was afraid that he antics at dinner a few nights ago had given the girl hopes where none had been before.

"Sire, Cyric of Dendum is here to speak with you…." That explained it. Medb's lapdog. He stood in one swift movement and crossed to Sarah, offering his arm, Erina's gaze all but boring a hole in the back of his head.

"Tell him that we will see him shortly." The sisters looked confused, casting their contrasting eyes back and forth between him and Sarah. Erina looked ready to spit fire when she spotted the tiara on Sarah's head, on the other hand, Jeaule gave a small smirk that told him she was as annoyed at her sister's attentions to him as he was. Jareth chuckled as he heard Sarah sigh next to him.

"Is everyone going to look at me like that now…?"

**Cyric** fiddled with the collar of his silken tunic as he waited for Jareth to grace him with his oh so eminent presence. He had to admit, reluctantly, that the room around him was very well designed. It was simple, with its grey stone walls and wooden thrones, but it held enough pretension in its décor to keep those waiting wary.

The kings of old were staring down on Cyric like he had a rotten agenda, making him feel uncomfortable even though his intentions here today would surely favor his majesty. It had taken all this time to find a moment when Medb would surely not notice his absence and he was going to make sure that he made the most of it. Rolling his eyes, he stared out the window, wondering how long the Goblin King would see fit to make him wait.

His view out the window was of the Goblin City below. He couldn't understand why Medb wanted it so much. Though it was sure that once she had her hands on this land…it would look much different indeed. All of those rickety, albeit quaint, homes would be demolished to put in gardens or more arenas for those fools to kill each other for her hand.

The door opening behind him brought his attention away from the thoughts of a future that he didn't want to happen. It was the sisters again. The dark haired sister reminded him a bit of Medb and was surprised that she put him off, but the other…her pale beauty captured him every time she walked in the room. Her shook off the strange thoughts as he forced his eyes on the darker sister.

Dark blue eyes fixed on his and he wondered if she always wore that casual sexuality like a cheap perfume or if it was just for him. Shuddering unexpectedly at either thought, his eyes stole to white blonde strands of hair as the pale beauty spoke to Cyric, "His majesty, Jareth, Goblin King…" Jareth walked through the door with a swagger that made Cyric bite his tongue. It wouldn't do to make him mad now. "…and his consort, the Lady Sarah of the Aboveground." Cyric's eyes narrowed speculatively as the woman was announced then widened, shocked at the honorific.

When the girl entered, not even he could deny that she was beautiful, but the knowledge of her roots made his noble nose crease. What was Jareth playing at? Cyric was about to ask him just that when the sunlight glinted off of the delicate tiara on Sarah's head. He couldn't have schooled his features, they merely fell in shock, only to return to a smiling sneer as twin bemused smirks crossed the faces of king and consort.

His eyes flicked back to the sisters, surprised that even their reactions to this were as contrasting as they were themselves. The darker sister looked like she would gladly drive a knife into the back of the Lady Sarah, but his strange, soft spoken beauty had a small, secret smile on her face as she looked between her sister and Sarah. He knew what was going on without being a part of the situation and smirked at the quiet sister, causing her to blush and tame her smirk.

"That's good for now Jeaule," Jareth said, nodding to the girl who captured his attentions despite himself. "Erina…" his majesty seemed short with her and understandably as he must also know that the woman wanted to be in his Lady's place. "You two may go now." The sisters walked out of the room and he almost missed the last glimpse from Jeaule…what a pretty name, he thought reluctantly…which made his stomach jitter in a way he had never felt. He didn't have time to think this over as Jareth pushed on. "What can I do for you…Cyric of Dendum?" Jareth's question pulled his attention from the woman at his side.

"I come with interesting news that you…and your Lady might find quite valuable." Cyric struggled to keep his face composed as the brow of the king tilted, one side lifting in distrust.

"And pray tell, Cyric, what you could tell us that we would believe." He sauntered closer to the couple, slowly, not wanting to incur wrath, but trust.

"It's no secret that I am Medb's suitor at the moment. It is also no secret that I am notoriously unable to share." His lips quirked when the king laughed full and heartily. Everyone knew of his exploits to keep gypsy tribes from his lands, he was kind at first, but when disobeyed in his own land…he could be brutal.

"Very well then, why should I trust your confidence though?" Since he was no longer in shock, his attention on Sarah was completely severed. His gaze captured Jareth's and didn't let go. Cyric knew that he had to stand his ground here, any show of weakness at this point would mean failure. With his jaw set in impudence and pride, he stared down the king.

"You have no good reason to believe me, only know this…I want Medb for myself. If I weren't to help you…she would have you." He gave the two a handsomely roughish smile, his eyes drifting over to Sarah's lithe frame as he paused. "I don't think, considering that lovely tiara, that either of you want that to happen." Cyric brushed idly at a stray lock of hair that covered his forehead, chuckling lightly as Sarah blushed and the king smirked. "It just so happens, that I don't want it to happen either."

He was shocked enough to take a step back when the woman Sarah took one forward. She suddenly seemed regal beyond her title. She had seemed a meek little mouse but a moment before, someone easily tossed to the background, but this…this was unexpected. The change from silent Lady beside her Chosen to…Queen…was so swift that Cyric's mouth hung slack. Oh she would be magnificent, his mind thought before he could reign it. Cyric snapped his mouth shut and tried not to look at the bemused expression on Jareth's face.

"We don't want that to happen, that shrew will never lay hands on the Labyrinth or the Goblin City." Jareth seemed beyond pleased at Sarah's words and rightly so. "So why don't you _tell_ us what you have planned instead of skirting the issue with your pleasant smiles?" He couldn't help but let another of his 'pleasant smiles' capture his face.

"Very well." He conjured himself a seat and nodded in Sarah's direction. "You might want to conjure up a chair for your Lady, Your Highness. My story is long." He took a deep breath and preceded to tell them what Medb wanted. His tale was detailed…Cyric would give the king every bit of knowledge that he had on the situation. "Don't you see Sire…," he asked after a few minutes. "…Medb wants to use your Darkness enhanced powers to take over the Underground." On his throne, Jareth tensed and his Lady looked confused…interesting.

"That is enough of that Cyric." Jareth's voice was terse and final.

"But Jareth…what is he talking ab…" The Lady Sarah started, only to be cut off by His Majesty.

"I said enough of that." Jareth closed a bit more compassionately. Cyric admired the fire in her eyes as she frowned down at Jareth. Good…at least he found someone that would keep him somewhat humble. No one could mistake the 'we will be having a talk later' look in the Lady's eyes and the 'yes, but deal with it now' look in the King's. Cyric was unwillingly impressed. It usually took a King and Queen years to develop that kind of silent connection while talking to the likes of him. Jareth sighed and turned back to him, almost as if reluctant to let him continue. "Now Cyric…what other knowledge do you have of the situation…?"

"I know that you have a month and a half left." Sarah's brows raised and she moved her hand in a foreign circular motion when he said nothing else. When he frowned at her she gave a demure sigh.

"Is that all…?" Was it…? Cyric frowned in concentration as he tried to think of more information to give them. "Is there any information in there that can help us keep this from happening? We don't even know HOW to stop her." Sarah managed, remarkably, to maintain her surprising regal air even as she crossed her arms in irritation. "You aren't being of much help to us." Cyric wanted desperately to tell her off…he was Cyric of Dendum, consort to Medb, Queen of the Faeries! But Jareth was smiling at her. The Lady had obviously said just what he had wanted to. Damn.

"I don't know exacts my Lady…Medb doesn't share ALL her secrets with me. All I know is that it has something to do with the relationship between the two of you." Sarah raised a pretty brow, intrigued, but Jareth seemed to already know that information as he was looking bored. "I can imagine that it would be a despairing blow to her campaign if you announced your…intentions with Lady Sarah here." Jareth sneered knowingly, but nodded.

"Indeed, that would hamper the little hussy a bit." Cyric bit his lip, it wouldn't do to talk back to the man when he was, essentially, right. "So what do you want Cyric? You just want me to announce my Choice of the Lady Sarah to be my Queen?" Sarah turned those fierce green eyes on Jareth, but kept her tongue when his hand raised…though Cyric could tell it was a struggle for her.

"It would be in favor for both of us…" he jumped as Sarah's glare turned on him. His eyes widened as he felt her power, his mouth forming a silent 'o' of shock. Sarah demurred quickly at the look on his face.

"Keep that to yourself Cyric of Dendum…or I will see that you are unable to ever tell a tale again." Jareth's voice was as deadly as his insinuations were, Cyric had no choice but to nod, but oh what an interesting turn of events. That would not please Medb when she found out, but it did shed light on something that had been bothering him, something that he wouldn't be sharing…why Medb needed to sacrifice Sarah.

"Are you kidding Your Majesty!? I have knowledge of something that Medb doesn't. That is not a point of leverage I am going to give up easily." He bowed deep to Jareth and also to Sarah…though he didn't have to yet as she wasn't Queen…as he started to back from the room. "Your secret is safe with me Lady and good luck to the both of you." With one final courtesy bow, he teleported to Medb's rooms, only to find her pacing the room, agitated.

"Where the hell were you!?" she shouted accusingly at him, her eyes like piercing icicles ready to stab him mercilessly. Not for the first time, he wondered just WHY he was completely enamored of her. Truly told, her porcelain skin looked radiant when flushed and her fury of black hair was gorgeous when disheveled, but what was there to love about HER? Medb noticed the look of confusion on his face and her attitude shifted radically…was that it?

But his thoughts were lost as her eyes seduced him all over again, until all thoughts and ponderings were washed away like petals on a river. Her hands skimmed under his tunic, lighting his skin aflame with a passion he hadn't felt a moment ago. Her breath was hot on his ear as she asked him the same question again, this time a silken purr to his senses.

"Isn't a man allowed to check on his lands?" Where he had dug the nerve for such a response was blank to him, but Medb pulled back as if she had been struck. She narrowed her eyes to sliver-blue slits and spun, a flurry of onyx locks, storming to bed. When she folded herself under the covers, he knew that they would not make love that night. So why didn't it bother him as much…?

He went to the couch he slept on when 'banished' from the bed, without a blink and stretched out on it. As he drifted off, platinum hair and doe eyes flitted through his thoughts.

**Sarah** didn't know what to say as they left the throne room and headed back to their room, so she made a study of the hall floor. Strange that she was thinking of it as their room already, but in her mind, that's what it was now. What was she going to say to him when they got to their little sanctuary where they had started getting along? She was shocked by the stunned anger simmering in her blood as they walked down the hall.

Why and what was he hiding from her about the Darkness? This was the second time in the same day that he had silenced someone talking about it. Though, truly told, with his mother, he had been more delicate about it. When she looked up from the stone hallway floor, Sarah was stunned to see that they were already in their room. Well, she thought with a sigh, better now than never. She took a breath to begin and Jareth stole her thunder.

"I know what you are going to start yelling at me about so let me spare you the strained vocal chords." Wanting to smack him for that comment alone, Sarah restrained herself and sat down slowly, straight backed and silently on the edge of the bed, crossing her legs and lacing her fingers over her knee. With her lips pursed in irritation and sarcasm in her eyes, she urged him to talk with out doing so herself. "You want to know about the Darkness…am I correct?"

"Why Jareth…" she cooed derisively. "…whatever would make you think that?" His mismatched gaze flared, but she set her jaw and let her eyes burn right back which, surprisingly…made him smile.

"Oh Sarah…" he said as he dropped to the bed beside her. "I told you that you would learn how to shut me up." Her anger melted slowly, like an early spring thaw, as he laid back on the bed next to her, looking exhausted. "There is so much that I don't even know how to describe to you Sarah." His voice was strained and hesitant as she laid down next to him, resting her head on his shoulder.

"Try." Jareth's hand came up to pull her closer, his chin resting on the top of her head.

"Sarah it made me want to do terrible things to you. Made me want you to suffer ten fold for what you had put me through." His voice was flat, strange…it made her want to pull away from him, but something told her that would be the worst thing to do. "The Darkness is the reason I didn't take you in the first place during the trial. It's why I was so mean to you the first night I finally did have you." Sarah did pull back a little at this, but only because she wanted to shift herself. For the first time in her life she was following her gut as she waved her hand to remove his shirt and conjured up his pajama pants.

"Don't stop…keep telling me about it." He was reluctant and skeptical as she what she was doing and it showed on his face. "Just talk…let me do the rest." Apparently, he had enough of his old self aware to grin wickedly at that. Chuckling, Sarah slapped his bare chest. "Not THAT you pig…" she chided as she pushed at his sides, turning him on his belly.

"Shatter my dreams why don't you…?" It made her smile, happy that though his attitude towards this Darkness was so strange…Jareth was still there. "Very well, the Darkness…what to say about it?" Sarah let her hands massage and knead the tense muscles in his back, pushing the tension out from his spine. "Oh Gods, Sarah…that's deliciously evil…continue." She pulled her hands back with a smile.

"Only if you do." He turned his head so he could see her and she smiled down at him in return. "How about it…?" she teased, letting her fingertips trace lightly over his back.

"It's like an evil shadow that resides in the dark corners of your mind." Her hands went to work, pushing the stress from him as he finally let out the truth about the Darkness that had eaten at him. It nearly brought her to tears as he spoke of how tormented he had been by it all those years. It had corrupted his mind, turned his memories of her to a black and soiled thing.

When his back and shoulders were loose and his story had reached a pause, Sarah leaned over and placed a kiss between his shoulder blades, shocking herself as much as him. He turned himself over and sat up, staring into her eyes with a guarded curiosity.

"Do you want to know the most important part, love?" He asked as he took her hand in his, pulling her closer to him. Sarah nodded, the look in his eyes having silenced her words. "You made it go away." A smile tilted her lips slowly as his hand coaxed them closer to his. "You are my light Sarah…that is why I will never let you go. I…" she didn't let him finish, her mind took over and she lowered her lips to his.

Her fingers sought the bare flesh of his chest, she wanted to be closer to him, but feared there was no way to be as close to him as she desired. His fingers tangled in her hair as he started lowering her back on the bed. It was the sensation of being lowered and knowing what he wanted that made her snap out of it.

"Jareth…" The simple plea had him pulling back. He didn't even tease her. It was incredible that he just knew that she wasn't ready. In all her years, she never would have thought that he would be as understanding. Without a word, he pulled her back to his chest and ran his fingers up and down her arm soothingly.

"So what do you think about what Cyric told us?" Changing the subject was another thing she loved him for. She thought about it as she studied his remarkably hair free chest.

"I don't know if I am entirely comfortable with being all but forced to announce that I am marrying you." His chest shook under her head with a silent laughter.

"Is the thought of marrying me so horrible to you, love?" She slapped his chest playfully and frowned.

"You know that isn't it. I just don't like that we would announce it to piss her off instead of announcing it cause we are happy about it." Sarah could feel him nodding above her and wondered what he would say.

"I would rather it be all about us as well, but honestly Sarah…it is a good idea to announce it now." Her brow creased though she knew he was right…she just wanted him to agree with her. Oh how childish are we being Sarah…, her mind scolded. She gave a dejected sigh and idly traced patterns on his chest.

"I know it is and I will deal with the fact that I have to share the glory of it…if only in my own mind. Everyone else will be thinking of us…not her." With a smile and a kiss to his chest, she cuddled in closer.

"That's my girl…" she heard as she drifted off to sleep.

Jareth was gone when she woke the next morning, but there was a rose on the pillow next to her. It was probably only a side thought from him, she thought pessimistically, but a secret part of her glowed from the delight of it. Thinking of how she would repay him for the romantic gesture made her first Queen lesson with Maesia go by all the faster.

Learning how to walk with a book on your head, how to wave correctly…god there was a RIGHT way to wave? She learned more in the two hours with Maesia than she would have cared to learn in a lifetime, but she knew that if she wanted Jareth, it was all stuff that she needed to learn…however tedious.

"You were distracted today…" Maesia said knowingly, a bemused smile on her face.

"I…" Maesia waved her silent.

"I know very well where your mind was…" the smirk that graced Maesia's features made Sarah's cheeks burn. "I am delighted that you and Jareth are getting along and I say…go for it Sarah. He will wait forever for you, but how long can you wait?" Sarah blushed even deeper, wishing to be anywhere but there. "Oh don't be so prudish…go meet your Chosen and remember that…he is your's now…as much as you are his. Take advantage of that!"

Sarah smiled weakly and made her hasty exit. She pressed a hand to her cheek, feeling the heat there and hoping that the color would even out before she reached the library. A strangled groan escaped her throat as an image of a half naked Jareth reading a book flitted in her minds eye and she felt the new rush of heat on her face. By the time she made it to the library, she was muttering darkly under her breath.

"Something wrong love?" His breath was on her neck and it sent shivers down her spine and new thoughts to her mind. Her brain was shouting at what an ass he was while every other part of her wanted to simply melt back into him. "Come…" Jareth said, sensing her tension. "Let's begin." Nothing seemed able to work so she simply nodded and followed him. It was supreme luck on his part that Sarah didn't notice the haughty smirk on his face as he led her to the sofa and the pile of books on the low table before it.

"I KNOW how to conjure now Jareth…." Sarah moaned an hour later, a low and pounding migraine forming above her left eye. From across the library, Jareth teleported in a flash of glitter before her.

"Now Sarah…" One slender finger pointed at him with vehemence.

"THAT!" she shouted, perhaps a bit too fervently. "I want to learn how to do that!"

**Jareth** stared down at her in disbelief and then shook his head slowly as he sat down beside her on the plush sage green sofa.

"Sarah, Sarah…" he started, still slowly shaking his head. "You have to learn to finish one lesson at a…"

"No…I am beyond tired of conjuring." To prove her point, she conjured up a perfect cup of tea and handed it to him. He watched on, sipping his tea and smirking in an unconvinced way, though he knew he was going to do as she asked, as she conjured something new with each word of her last effort to convince him. "I am bored of it!" A red knitted scarf, a little shiny bobble jewelry, a small stuffed bear, a cup of coffee and a book entitled 'Screw You'…obviously his dulcet darling's creation…now littered the floor.

"Now why did you have to conjure that revolting…coffee?" He asked as he reached over to pick up her daring book. As he inspected the cover, Sarah reached over and took the mug in her hand.

"I can't help it if tea makes me gag?" she asked as she took a sip of the sludge, an expression of pure ecstasy over her face. "So…?" He raised his head a moment from the book with a noncommittal 'hmm?' "Why are you so engrossed in that stupid joke book?" Sarah seemed genuinely confused so he handed it to her and smiled broadly as her face paled then flushed a wonderful shade of crimson.

"I was just delighting in the double meaning." The cover had been a delightfully erotic creation of her mind that made it very difficult for him to keep his hands from her, but he managed…somehow. Sarah made the book vanish, to his displeasure. "Oh love…now why did you have to go and ruin literature like that?" he purred, his tone teasing.

"Because it's not something that you should be reading…" she stated as she took another sip of the black liquid, adding over the edge of her cup, "perve."

He knew she wouldn't stray from the true subject for long, but waited for her to bring it back up, wanting in, yes, a perverse way, for her to beg for it a little. So he leaned back in the sofa, propped his feet up on the low table and closed his eyes, appearing to disregard what she had asked. The clink of her coffee cup on the table was almost as satisfying as hearing her call out his name would be…almost, he thought with a smile.

"Jareth…?" He struggled to smother the smile that her annoyed tone always brought out and only half managed. "Oh you are insufferable!" The little minx startled his eyes open as he felt her straddle his lap, but he was determined not to give her an inch.

"Sarah…?" Jareth asked right back in the same aggravated manner, causing her body to slump on his lap.

"Fine…I know what you want, you supreme brat." Her lips were between a pout and a smile as she said it. Putting on amazingly effective doe eyes, she focused those deliciously irresistible pouty lips at him. "Please, oh mighty Goblin King, teach this lowly being how to use her…pop around the room like an annoying ass…powers." He wanted to give in, but he couldn't help what came out of his mouth.

"You started well…the honorific was wonderfully executed," he stifled the grin this time as her eyes narrowed and her lips purse in annoyance. "But…"

"Oh come ON!" Her arms flew up in the air at her exclamation.

Jareth merely grinned and continued, "But…I don't think you need lessons on being an annoying ass."

"Oh you…!" A slap on his chest had him pulling her closer and turning his body to pin her on the couch. Below him, Sarah looked delectably startled as he merely hovered over her.

"Careful little Queen…" Jareth brought her fingers to his lips and kissed each one. "Don't want to anger the tyrant now do you?" The wickedly slow smile that crossed her face was intoxicating.

"I don't know…do I?" Was she flirting back with him…? For probably the first time in his long life, Jareth was stumped. Now he understood how he always made people feel…and he didn't like the discomfiture, so he changed the subject.

"Not if you want to learn how to do this." He teleported himself a safe distance away from her before he simply ravished her. When she located him across the room, there was a guarded hope in her eyes.

"Really…? No tricks?" Throwing a crooked grin her way, he nodded cryptically and popped back in front of an irritated Sarah with crossed arms.

"It IS a trick after all darling." All smiles and excitement now, Sarah jumped into his arms. How was he supposed to react to her sudden desire and willingness to touch him? It would be a torture, but he would have to school himself…he wasn't going to frighten her off again.

"Ok…what do I do?" Sarah stepped back from the embrace, no longer the tempting morsel she had been a moment ago. How did she turn it on and off like that? Was it deliberate…? Or was it simply her nature? Either way, he was sure it would drive him mad before she offered herself.

"It may seem rather daunting, but it's rather simple really. Get a picture in your head of where you want to go and, on the same principle of conjuring, will yourself to go there." She still looked confused so he tried elaborating. "Ok, you know how when you conjure something, you picture it in your head and then produce the crystal…in effect willing the object into existence?" She nodded, he continued, "well it works like that. Picture where you want to go…for instance that bookshelf over there…" he popped himself over to the bookshelf. "And will yourself there."

"Ok…" she clapped her hands together and rubbed them together. "Let's try it." Jareth put a hand up.

"Wait Sarah…there is a little more to learn before you try it." Her mouth formed a silent 'o' and she gave him a wide smile as he walked back to her.

"Sorry…guess I'm anxious."

"It's ok, I just don't want you to kill yourself."

"KILL MYSELF!?" Her eyes were wide with her sudden fear. He ignored it and pressed on, placating her would only increase her fear. If he just moved on, she would see that it wasn't a high concern.

"You have to be careful HOW you teleport yourself." His thought was right, her breathing leveled and her eyes, though still a bit frightened, were trained on him, soaking up all that he said.

While it was very uncommon for something like that to happen, the threat of what COULD happen was a trick teachers of teleportation had been using for millennia…and it worked. It made students more aware of what they were doing and they were less likely to go off show boating the power if they always had that fear.

"You have to make sure that you picture yourself in FRONT of the bookshelf. If you aren't very specific…you could end up as a permanent part of it." Her eyes were wide, but she smiled.

"Ok, note taken…don't become a biological knick knack….got it." That smile was infectious when she turned it on him. "Am I going to glitter too?" He pulled her into his arms and kissed her forehead before resting his there.

"Most definitely…beautiful glitter, the housekeepers will be furious." With that, she started practicing, following his instructions and practicing in very open areas of the library for now. "Remember, never teleport yourself to a place you can't picture perfectly." She stopped next to one of the piles of books she had set up as markers.

"So that means I can never teleport to a place I have never been, ok gotcha" she noted and went back to work. He was confident enough in her power, after about forty five minutes, to sit down and give himself a moment to think.

She had been in the Underground for two weeks now, her transformation was complete and she was a stunning Fae. Her hair had a glossy sheen to it that it hadn't possessed when she was human, her skin that ethereal Fae shimmer. Her eyes remained unchanged though, much to his delight. He loved those eyes and every time he looked into them, they would remind him of what she had given up to be with him…what he had gained from that and what he had lost.

He couldn't believe that she had been his only three days. It seemed like she had always been his. Save for their first REALLY bad night…they had fallen right into a comfortable routine with one another. Sleeping without her next to him would be impossible now, he didn't know how he had achieved it before. How had she become everything to him so fast?

As he watched her teleport herself to another pile of books in a shimmer of her silver and green glitter, he knew. He had let her, he had wanted her more than anything he had ever wanted in his life and she had walked right into his arms. They would always argue and they would always want to kill each other at moments, but that was what made her so perfect for him.

If he had been given an amiable bore for a mate, he might have lost his mind. Jareth loved the challenge of Sarah, the fire that was so uncommon in women born to his kind. It was that fire that he had fallen in love with, that fire he had clung to in the Darkness, that fire which had ultimately saved him from it.

True, nothing intimate had happened between them yet, much to his discomfort, he thought as he shifted on the couch. But, he thought, she was letting him touch her…she was touching HIM of her own will. That would have to be enough for him until she was ready to give herself to him. Jareth was startled out of his thoughts when Sarah teleported RIGHT in front of him, a devilish smile on her face.

"I thought I told you to be careful!" he shouted as he grabbed her and pulled her closer. That little trick of hers could have ended very badly, but he silently commended her for perfect location in her teleport. His anger melted as he looked into her eyes. She wasn't frightened of him…there was no fear in her eyes and it shocked him.

But the shock wasn't going to end there, he felt her hands reach out for him. Long, slender fingers trailed up his sides and around his back, pulling him ever closer to her body as that secret smile held his attention.

"Sarah…?"

"Your mother gave me some advice today…" she spoke softly as she tentatively laid her lips to his throat. "…and you looked so adorable sitting there, lost in thought." Her lips smiled up at him knowingly before they pressed to the other side of his throat, causing his breath to hitch. What was she doing? "I could all but hear your thoughts. So I decided to take her advice…" she brought her hands to his face, pulling him down for a light kiss that shattered his senses. "…and it seems to be working rather well."

"What are you…" a finger was placed over his mouth to stop his stammered words, not that he had much planned.

"Just shut up Jareth." That simple phrase split his face in a teasing grin and he twirled some of her silky black hair around his finger.

"See, I told you that you would get the hang of shutting me up." Sarah pursed her lips in the way that made his fingers itch to touch her.

"You're still talking." Jareth picked her up so he wouldn't have to lean down to kiss her and was shocked when he felt her legs wrap around his waist and her lips crush down on his. His fingers gripped at the material of her dress in shock before one wrapped around her waist and the other delved into her hair. The passion came in a wave that nearly knocked him off his feet.

One moment, she was merely a girl looking to be kissed, the next her magic welled up with the passion he had felt that morning. He knew that his will wouldn't be able to hold up to that kind of assault so he pulled her back, looking into her glossy eyes.

"Sarah…love, this has to stop now…or it isn't going to stop at all this time." Something indescribably feral flashed in her eyes as she bit her lip.

He felt the hand on the back of his head pull him in for another kiss, but when she pulled back they were no longer in the library. Around them now was their bedchamber and his mind all but cheered. She was offering herself, she was ready. His eyes sought hers, wanting to see it in her eyes. Her cheeks were flushed, she was obviously shocked at her own forwardness, but she wasn't backing down, she wanted this.

"My clever little minx," he said, resting his forehead on hers. "…but that was very risky of you." Jareth started backing towards the bed. "We could have been killed." Gently, he laid her on the bed letting his body weight press against her lightly. "Now I shall have to teach you another lesson."

**(A/N: Ok…so there you have it, chapter 12 part 1. Part 2 is posted as well, though it is a MATURE post that I wouldn't suggest that anyone read who doesn't want to read that. There will be nothing of interest other than that happening, so you won't miss any storyline, I promise. **

**I would like to thank those who read and reviewed last chapter…Agitation, BattleofEvermore, darklady26 (ever my best buddy), Kerichi (thanks for all the props hun!), Me (it's a reviewer not ME…I swear! LOL), phedre87 and saz89…I love you guys!**


	13. Lessons in Love PART 2

**Disclaimer: I own neither Jareth nor Sarah…they belong to Jim Henson and everyone else associated with that great movie. I am merely taking them on a new journey. **

**This is part 2 of Lessons in Love. **

It was really going to happen, her mind rejoiced. Her lashes fluttered down and her lips parted under his. Mindlessly he pulled her against him until their bodies were crushed close. She didn't resist as she suspected she would, but went with him as they slid over the silk sheets.

She'd wanted this, she realized, she wanted the triumph and the weakness of being touched by him. She'd wanted the glory of FINALLY letting herself go, of allowing her desires to run free. With his mouth hungry on hers, there was no need to think anymore, no need to hold back what she'd so desperately wanted to give him. What she's only ever wanted to give to him.

Her mind was reeling from the demands of her body. Take more, take all. She could feel him tug at the waist cincher and furrowed her brow. Oh why was he bothering with doing it himself? Why didn't he magic her clothing off and take what he wanted? Why didn't she do it herself? As she pulled his shirt from his pants, she knew.

The sudden electricity of skin on skin was exhilarating and the struggle of getting to that sensation was intoxicating. Still more, her mind cried…more. She skimmed her hands up his back, warm from the gentle breeze coming from the open balcony window.

Sarah wanted desperately to remember everything about this. The tastes…his lips, the dark magical flavor of them. The textures…the silk of the bed clothes getting almost slippery as their bodies dampened, the soft brush of his mouth over the curve of her breast. The scents around her…the breeze carried the scent of the gardens, sweet and heady in their glory of full bloom. Their magic…as it twisted and blended together as if they were already making love. She wanted to memorize it all as it mixed together in one consuming sensation…passion.

Jareth pulled her dress down her shoulders till her arms were pinned. He was going to drag this out as long as possible. Once he had made a promise that their first time would be memorable and by the gods…he would keep his word tonight. For a moment, she was helpless as he trailed his lips over her shoulders, nipping at the sensitive flesh.

Was it the sound of her moan that caused him to linger where he once would have rushed? He didn't know, but he paced himself…she would be his now…so smooth and pliable beneath him. The moonlight shimmered through the open balcony doors, adding a vulnerability to her that was usually hidden. Once he would have turned away from that kind of vulnerability, been turned off by it, but this was Sarah. Seeing that vulnerability in her showed him that he had finally earned her trust…it drew him in, the softness of it.

He'd wanted her like this…just like this…mindless and burning for him. He'd dreamed of it, the way she would move under him, the noises she would make, even the scent of her skin as he drove her to quivering need.

Now that she was at his fingertips, now that he had it…it wasn't enough.

He wanted to unravel her inch by inch, to watch her fall apart under his touch…to be his. His own needs were brutal, pumping impatiently through his blood as he touched her slowly exposing flesh, but he forced himself to linger…to savor.

Sarah's body seemed a tumult of emotions that she had never experienced before and it was driving her just as wild as he planned. Then his hands were framing her face and he brought his lips to hers in a kiss that was so gentle it drugged every cell of her body. She felt him tug the dress up and over her head finally, shivering once in the Labyrinth's night breeze before his body warmed her.

He felt so strong against her, she knew his body was long and lean, but this strength surprised her. It was his hands that shocked and thrilled her the most, they played over her with the care of a musician over a favored instrument. She heard Maesia's words again, he is yours….

Sarah tugged his shirt over his head, letting her fingers skim over his skin. He shivered when she touched him, so she touched once more, wanting to give pleasure as he had given it to her. Inexperienced she may be, but she could read his face clearly enough.

Honestly, she thought that panic would set in or at least the need to rush through this, but she was surprised when his lazy kisses and lingering touches showed her that they had all the time in the world. When his mouth came back to devour hers, she tasted the barely restrained hunger on his lips…it was held fiercely in check, he would torture her slowly. How she knew this, she couldn't tell and didn't care as her back arched against him and his hands dipped under the material of her panties to grip her behind, pulling her hips to him. Pleasure bubbled up within her like rich champagne and came softly through her lips.

His mouth on her bra covered breast had the need leaping to the next level. Yet he refused to hurry, even when she arched against him again. Hands traveled back up her body slowly, brushing over sweat sheened skin. With his first bit of magic, Jareth ran his hands over the bra, dissolving it so his tongue could flick and his teeth nibble…until he could feel the wild desire pulsing through her.

She thought only of him now, Jareth knew it even as he struggled to hold the reins of his own boiling passion. He would give her more, she'd take all…and so by the gods would he.

When she struggled with the mystery of how to get his pants off, he let her have her way. He wanted to be flesh to flesh with her…without barriers. In his mind, his dreams, he had already been with her like this a hundred times. Her hair was a black ocean of waves spread out on the bed, her skin was smooth and all too enticing and delectable.

Her breathing was uneven as she gave up and used her magic to get rid of the pants. It was a lesson in restraint to simply sit back and let her explore too. Jareth had to remember that everything that was happening to her, was happening for the first time…so he laid back and let her discover.

Wherever she could reach she touched, she tasted, wallowing in pleasure each time she heard his breath tremble. It was almost too much for the senses, knowing that the powerful Goblin King lay naked beneath her, letting her seduce him. Her panties were drawn slowly down her body by strong, clever hands, until she was wearing nothing but the flush of passion.

"Lay back Sarah…" he urged, positioning himself above her again. With his lips, he journeyed down her body, slowly, so that every kiss, lick and nibble would set her body on edge. His tongue snaked over the tender flesh where leg met. Then, abruptly as she had teleported them into this room, Sarah was lost in a chaos of sensation too dark and far too deep to understand.

He could feel every dark flash of new pleasure course through her body and burst inside his own. He could hear her stunned gasps, and heard her swallow them hard. He took more, even more and made her arch violently against him in frantic need.

"Jareth…" hearing his name as a pleading moan from her lips was almost too much. He brought himself back to face her…he wanted to see her face when she climaxed…when HE brought her to peak.

"Not yet love…" he whispered as his hand cupped her and drove her ever further, the rapid pulse just under his lips as he kissed her neck setting his pace. Her breathing hitched as her passion built, his name muttered over and over again, her eyes glazed. Jareth brought his mismatched eyes to her gaze, catching it and holding it as his hand drove her harder. "Look at me." Glazed eyes obeyed in hazy passion.

As she drew breath to moan his name again, he drove her up and over. Climax slapped into climax like waves battering a cliff and left her gasping for air. She felt his hand remove itself as he positioned himself before her. Sarah bit her lip, but Jareth's were on them, coaxing them open gently. He brought a hand to her hair, stroking it softly as he stared into her eyes.

"Do you want the pain fast and over with, love…?" Biting her lip again, she nodded. "Trust me, Sarah just trust me…" he murmured as he leaned in to kiss her again.

"I trust you, Jareth." He went back to loving her, taking her mind from the pain. The air was ripe, thick and tasted of him with every gulping breath she took as his hands calmed her.

He lifted her hips high and his eyes burned into hers. With one violent trust, he was inside her, hilt deep. He caught her scream with his lips and sat up, pulling her with him so she was sitting on his lap, arms twined around him. Jareth simply held her there as her body adjusted to him.

"Stay with me, Sarah." His fingers dug into her flesh lightly and he began to move, laying her back down on the bed. "Stay with me."

What choice did she have? She was locked, trapped, the pain fading as he moved inside of her…turning into a new and incredible sensation that was so much more than he had shown her thus far. Her breathing was slower now, shallow and her vision was misted at the edges, but instinct took over and she began to move with him. Stroke for stroke she matched his rhythm.

He shuddered when she came again, when she closed around him like a damp fist, as her nails dug into his flesh and his name was gasped in shock. Jareth fought a vicious battle with himself not to follow, not yet. There was so much more. Even as the blood pounded like a goblin hoard in his brain, he wanted so much more.

And so he dragged her back up, until her legs wrapped gloriously around him again and her hair hung down like a curtain around her shoulders. Slowly and deliberately, he worked her to a new frenzy until her body tensed around him again, until her head dropped on his shoulder.

Then and only then did he bury his face in her hair and let himself fall over the edge.

**(A/N: Hope those who read this one enjoyed it! Catch you all on the next chapter!)**


	14. Unsuspecting Pawns

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything from the Labyrinth, nor do I profit from the writing of this story. I merely gain the profit of my reviewers remarks…and until I write my own story…those are more precious than gold to me!**

**This chapter is about the poor unsuspecting pawns of this story. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!**

**The**_ darkness around her was all consuming, like she was suspended in a cold a lifeless realm where no light could penetrate. Sarah struggled in vain to spot even the dimmest glow in the endless black surrounding her. Even when she urged her body to move, it was as if she were merely walking in place, the world around her a cruel and invisible treadmill. _

"_Hello…?" she called out into the emptiness. There was no call in return, not even the echo of her own voice. It had been consumed by the darkness around her, she knew this place now. This was where she had sent Jareth. Her brain cried out to her, and she fell to her knees, if that was possible in a place like this. _

_What had she done to him? Would the guilt she felt ever ease? The guilt, she knew, would always be there in some form. When Jareth's eyes wandered blankly, she knew she would always feel that twinge, whenever he gave her that small, sad smile from across the room… there would always be something. _

_The first question was far easier to answer, now that she was here. She had sentenced him to something far more terrifying and FAR more deadly to the mind than that white room. It was a wonder he could look at her without wanting to kill her for imprisoning him here in this dreadful place. He had…she mused, he had wanted to torture her, make her suffer for the time he had been forced to spend in this place. _

_Why had that changed? That was a question that she couldn't answer, but she was glad to have him, glad to have been given a second chance with him. She silently thanked the Gods for giving her this chance and was rewarded with a blinding light. Her eyes snapped shut in reaction and she felt herself being pulled forward. _

_When she opened her eyes, she was standing in a room full of Fae, dwarves, elves and other assorted creatures of the Underground. A soft yet firm hand on her shoulder drew her attention. It was Morrigan. The goddess looked resplendent in her flowing white gown, but no one could mistake the power and fierceness in those jade green eyes. _

"_Where am I?" Through wisps of curling red hair, Morrigan turned to Sarah, motioning wide before her._

"_This is the future as it stands now, Sarah." Sarah stared through the crowd and was confused by what she saw. Everyone in the crowd was either laughing and pointing or crying and cowering. Something drastic was happening and Sarah didn't like the feel in the air. "See and learn dear, for the future of all is up to you…." With that wonderfully helpful and vague comment, Morrigan disappeared next to her. _

"_See and learn…yeah thanks." Her mind went to work as she fought her way through the emotionally divided crowd. She had to step over several of the crying creatures on her way, they wouldn't move for her, it was like they had lost all care for life because of whatever was happening at the front of the crowd._

_When several of the laughing in the crowd bumped into her, she fell hard to the ground. It was only then that she realized, when it slapped against her chest, that she had a necklace on. Her fingers reached for the pendant and Sarah gasped as she looked at it. Jareth's crescent pendant, on a smaller scale, rested in the palm of her hand. Was she Queen in this diddy of a future that Morrigan was showing her?_

_Two goblins in front of her sniffled and looked up at the one who had stumbled over them. When their little watery eyes went wide, Sarah knew that she was at least more important than she was in her reality. Their tears cleared as they scrambled to help her up, muttering things about how they had thought she was dead._

_Her two helpers pushed through the crowd at a harried pace, laughter turning to shouts of anger as they parted the crowd. Sarah's mind whirled as she was pulled through the crowd, barely given time to catch her step. The crowd blurred past her, too fast for her to make out races, let alone faces. When she felt the little goblin hands on her thighs, urging her to stop moving, she almost stumbled over them a second time. They pulled her down to their level, telling her to stay quiet until she was ready and then they pointed to the scene unfolding at the front of the crowd._

_Jareth…her heart cried out as she saw him kneeling, back turned to the crowd. When her eyes drifted up, her mind raged and she nearly saw red. It was Medb, a crown on her head and one in her hands that she was lowering to Jareth's head…a victorious smirk on her face._

_Sarah didn't take a moment to think, her powers reacted to the sight before her, a cry ripping from her throat as she threw the crystal directly at the Faerie bitch._

"_Sarah…?" Jareth stood from where he knelt and turned to her. She ran up to him, throwing her arms about him, not caring or wondering why his stayed motionless at his sides. "Sarah…!" His voice was a bit more forceful this time…and seemed to be coming from far away. Finally, she felt his hands on her arms, but his fingers were digging in painfully. Her eyes darted to his and her whole body froze at what she saw…absolutely nothing. His eyes were as black as the darkness she had been swimming in earlier and there was something frighteningly evil in the way the corner of his mouth tilted up…._

"_You aren't Jareth…" Those unearthly black eyes bored into her soul, his mouth sneering as his fingers gripped at her arms harder, forcing a cry from her._

"_You aren't worthy…." Her breath caught in her throat as the misty darkness seeped from his eyes, curling down his arms and towards her. Without any knowledge of the substance, her body knew that if it touched her, she would be in a world of suffering._

"_Sarah!!!" Jareth's voice was stronger now and the imposter in front of her looked worried. Sarah struggled in vain to free herself from the vice like grip of the pseudo Jareth._

"_You won't get rid of me so easily little Queen." The imposter let her go and she felt the world around her shift and start to fade. "I won't let him go that easily."_

"Sarah, damn it! Wake up!" Jareth's voice was loud and clear as she opened her eyes. His face was etched with worry, his brows drawn together, those wonderfully mysterious mismatched eyes intent on her. Her hand reached up to push a strand of hair from his face…wanting to forget the horror of her dream and fill her mind with him…the real him.

Her horror stricken mind reached out to him, pulling him closer, needing him to push away the fear that was boiling inside of her. Her hands roamed the expanse of his chest, over that crescent pendant that she'd had in her dream. Her chest clenched and she forced her eyes to his…she needed only him right now.

"Sarah what's wrong…?" Her lips silenced him, she didn't need his words right now, she needed him and have him she would. Sarah lost herself in him and slowly took him over the edge with her.

It wasn't until later when she was satiated and curled against his side, listening to his breathing level out, that he spoke anything but her name again.

"What were you dreaming Sarah?" She groaned and buried her face in his side.

"I thought it was quite plain that I was trying to forget that damn dream." His hand was at her chin, but, feeling a bit childish, she refused to raise her head. A startled shout escaped her lips when she felt herself being lifted and flipped. Gloriously soft and diligent lips hovered over her now as he stared down at her.

"While I would adore to wake up with you ready to love me every morning, I want to know what made you cry in your sleep and go pale with a cold sweat." He lifted her hand and trailed light kisses over her wrist.

"Was it really that bad…?" She asked, frowning as he nodded.

"I couldn't wake you, love." The last thing she wanted to do was relive that dream, but she also wanted to know what it meant. With a quick curse to her inquisitive nature, she sighed and told Jareth what had happened.

"And then…you turned to me, but it wasn't you Jareth, it just wasn't." Eyes that had been intent a moment ago turned wary at that.

"What do you mean?" She leaned against him again as he conjured her chemise and sat them both up in the bed, leaning back against the headboard.

"I mean that when I looked into 'your' eyes," she said, using the air quotes. "It wasn't you. You weren't there. Your eyes were black and your face and voice were cruel…different." His chest rumbled lightly beneath her, but she could tell in his voice that he was trying to hard to play this off.

"I am cruel Sarah…you are no stranger to that side of me." Sarah pulled back, cupping his face in her hands.

"You ARE cruel darling, but this was different…this was evil." She pulled his lips to hers, needing the contact again, wanting as she knew she always would want, to never think of that face again. "You may be cruel at times, but you aren't evil Jareth…and this was. What do you think he meant by 'I won't let him go that easily'?" Jareth sighed and pulled her back, it worried her that he wouldn't meet her eyes.

"I should have told you before now." She laid her hand on his shoulder, but even the contact with him seemed remote.

"Jareth…?"

"What you saw in your dream was the Darkness." A short laugh escaped her.

"I knew that Jareth. I told you that it all started in the Darkness." His eyes met hers again finally and the almost tortured look she saw there halted her words. "You didn't' mean the place." His head shook slowly. "That other you? That was the Darkness?" Again he nodded.

"It ate at me while I was in that place you got a glimpse of. All those years of the Darkness eating at my conscious gave it a place there." Sarah pulled back slightly, frightened by his words.

"Are you telling me that…THING…is inside of you?" His hand reached out to her, but she was hesitant. If that was inside of him, how could she trust him?

"Sarah…don't pull away from me. The Darkness is in me, but you're fighting it off. You are my light Sarah and if I lose you again…I would lose that light as well." The self demeaning words from someone like him was shocking enough, she just thanked the Gods that he wasn't pleading with her…she didn't think she could stand to see him do that. "I can't fight this thing without you, love…I need you." It was as simple as that…he needed her.

"I won't leave you" she cooed as she pulled him to her. He clung to her like a lifeline. How could she leave him when he finally wanted her, finally needed her? The answer was simple…she couldn't and wouldn't. When he pulled back from her she was pleased to find that she saw only his face and not a flash of her dream.

"So…describe the place in your dream to me again. Let's see if we can figure out where it was." Sarah did as she was asked, describing the black stone and how the crowd was all surrounding the wicked looking thrones. As she thought back to the visual from the crowd something clicked in her mind and she shot up.

"Oh my god, Jareth! I need to go to that room that your mother had me sent to when we first got here!" Her mind was racing. It couldn't have been the same thing…could it? Her head whipped around to face Jareth, her eyes desperate, but his only looked confused.

"I don't know which room she had you sent to Sarah." He reached out a hand as he moved to her, apparently still wary of her earlier show of fear towards him. That wariness bothered her more…she didn't want her Goblin King to be timid around her. If he was, he would cease to be Jareth in her mind, so she moved to him, showing him through contact and not words that she didn't fear him.

"The room with the bed that looks like a tree." His eyes regained some of their confidence, but she could tell that one slip of hers in backing away from him had done damage that would need healing. Jareth nodded and pulled her into his arms before teleporting them both into the room she described. Sarah, making a conscious effort now to show him that he meant something to her, stood on her tip toes to give him a quick kiss.

"Thank you so much…" she grabbed his hand and pulled him roughly towards the bed. "Come here!" Hearing his laughter behind her was the best reward she could have asked for.

"Again, love? I think I created a monster." Sarah jumped on the bed and scrambled towards the headboard.

"Jareth…light!" As her eyes scanned the headboard she muttered to herself, "Thank the gods for this hint." She felt the warm flash of all the windows and balcony doors being thrown open at once before she felt the warmth of Jareth's breath on her neck.

"And in the light as well…" he whispered before kissing her neck. Sarah chuckled and brushed him off, grabbing his hand to pull him next to her.

"Jeeze and you say that I'M the monster!" Her finger pointed to the intricate carving on the wooden headboard. "Look familiar?" His eyes were still merry when they turned to the carving, but his face fell in shock as he took in what was before him.

**Jareth**stared as he inspected the headboard…it was exactly as Sarah had described in her dream. The carving was painstakingly intricate, so much so that it was an impossibility that it had been formed by anything but the hands of the Gods themselves. The details were so minuscule and perfect that the creatures seemed to breathe. You could almost hear their laughter, feel their tears, feel the complete tension in the air.

There was a man fallen, broken at the feet of a woman who was laughing at him while lowering a crown to his head. It was also true that these two people looked a lot like himself and Medb. His eyes scanned further, taking in the crowd around the main spectacle. Again, as Sarah had said, the crowd was either laughing and pointing at the broken king or hunched and fallen to their knees, crying for their unfortunate lord.

"It's your dream…without a doubt." He turned slowly to his Chosen. She had shown him since her fright that morning, that she still cared and wasn't leaving him, but just the look of pure terror on her face for that split moment was burned into his mind. Fear of seeing that face was why he hadn't told her of it sooner. What if he became that thing from her dream? He couldn't imagine what would do that to him now, but Morrigan had said that her dream was the future as it was laid out right now. Well they would just have to change that now wouldn't they?

"It is…I can't believe I didn't put two and two together faster than that. See, over here" she pointed to the left of the main scene. "That's where I was." In the middle of the crowd, unmistakable as his Sarah, a woman was shouting. Her face was tortured, as if the scene unfolding before her was too much for her to bear. There was the crescent pendant swinging from her neck. "But you gave me a tiara…not a pendant."

"Well, I will have to remedy that, won't I?" He placed his hand over the pendant around his own neck and concentrated his magic. When his hand pulled back a new pendant and chain seemed to pull from its match around his neck. Jareth placed the chain in Sarah's hand and felt the magic crackle.

"What was that?" Forest green eyes popped up to meet his, the chain in her hand still attached to his pendant. With a light chuckle, he reached out his hand to smooth her hair, wild from a startling morning.

"That was our magic bonding in a new way." Her eyes turned to speculative green slits and she didn't have to use her words to question him. Those green slivers were enough. "I wouldn't do anything without letting you know first anymore, love, so calm down." Her narrowed eyes calmed a bit, but not completely.

"Tell me then." By the gods, could he love this woman any more completely?

"If you pull your own pendant from mine," he said, gesturing to the chain in her hand. "Then you being my Chosen will be official." Deliciously full lips formed an 'o' as he watched her look down at the chain in her hand.

"So if I pull this…we really are getting married?" He nodded, his body rigid, too nervous to move.

"And it's all up to you, love. I can't pull it…only you can." That information made her smile. Jareth knew that it would, his Sarah liked having power since she so rarely found that she had some over him. His little Queen said nothing, but he watched the smile cross her face and her eyes meet his own. There was a love in them that startled him. She did love him…she didn't need to say it. He watched as she leaned towards him, savored as her lips met his and nearly lost his mind as he felt the chain around his neck tighten then go limp.

"Now you can't get rid of me, Jareth…good luck." She spoke the words as a challenge on his lips and he smirked as he pulled her back and placed the pendant around her neck.

"I think it is you who needs the luck more than I." He let the crescent pendant fall between her breasts and couldn't help the smile that spread from ear to ear. All these years and she was finally his, finally his Queen. Well, soon to be Queen anyways. Because he felt near to giggling like an idiot, he turned his attention back to the headboard. "Is there anything else about this carving that might help us?" Sarah smiled knowingly, but turned her own attention to the headboard as well, not feeling the need to embarrass him right now, but he was sure that it would come up later.

"Hmmm, let's see." Her slender fingers traveled over the richly carved wood and stopped when she was near the bottom of the figure resembling him. Her eyes went wide and her hand beckoned him closer. "Jareth look…" At the feet of the laughing woman was his crescent pendant. "You laid your pendant at her feet. What does that mean Jareth?"

"That pendant is the symbol of my power," he managed, though his chest felt tight at the sight before him. "If it is at her feet, then it means that she is not looking to claim me as her king, but as her tool. She is going to use me for something, not just a new title and claim over the Goblin Kingdom." There was a feeling of dread in the pits of his stomach, but Sarah said what he was thinking first.

"The Darkness…." Jareth nodded gloomily.

"If I were under the Darkness' control, I would be a formidable weapon." His eyes scanned the crowd again and noticed a crystal in the air. "But it appears that you are as well." He pointed at the crystal and was flung towards the laughing Medb.

"Oh! I forgot that part of the dream…I flung it at her, but I never saw what happened to her." A wicked smile spread over her features. "Maybe I made the bitch disappear." Jareth smiled and took Sarah's hand in his. "So how do we keep this from happening, Jareth?"

"Well, Cyric said that to stop Medb it had something to do with our relationship and…" he didn't need to finish, Sarah was nodding and she knew what they had to do now. Jareth smiled at her as he took her hand and they went to prepare themselves.

**Medb** felt the numbing pressure of the migraine forming behind her right eye. Long elegant fingers gripped the bridge of her nose, trying to stop the sudden pounding. This couldn't be happening to her, not now…not when her plans were so close to fruition.

Two of her supporters hadn't even shown up for the meeting she had called today. They hadn't sent word of why they were unable to come, which meant that they had deserted her. They would get a war from here once she was in control of all that dark power Jareth had nesting within him.

That meant that she had four supporting groups left and of the four of them left…two were looking as if they were ready to get up and leave.

"Would someone like to tell me what the HELL has gotten into everyone?" Her voice was harsh and sharp, she was far beyond caring if these people stayed or left, but if they did leave…it would be in pieces. "First Ordin and Jerdom have the audacity not to show up and now you two are leaving!?" Telis and Nikos gave twin looks of shock at her knowledge while Virden and Helon leaned back in their chairs, twin looks of wicked amusement covering their scarred features. Even through the pain of her developing migraine, that gave her a bit of pleasure.

"M-milady," Telis started shakily, "we have stood by you all this time on the promise that you would marry Jareth and our job would be minimal." Her fiery red dress spun about her as she twirled about angrily, striding up to Telis. Medb let her icy gaze penetrate into Telis', making sure she didn't talk until he was all but frozen from it.

"And WHAT, dear Telis, is THAT supposed to mean?" Her tone was as icy as her gaze and twice as deadly. The idiot seemed unable to speak, his mouth moved, but there were no words. It was like watching a fish struggle for air and it disgusted her, so she turned her rage on Nikos. "WELL!?" she roared at the now sniveling man.

"Surely Your Majesty has heard the news…?" He seemed shocked that she hadn't heard whatever it is he seemed unable to tell her outright. Feeling particularly wicked, Medb put on silky tones and sauntered up to Nikos, kneeling before him and letting her fingers trail over his tunic.

He was completely confused by her flip of emotion and while any smart man would have stayed on guard, the fool smirked. Medb would have liked to have simply ripped the smirk from his face, or perhaps turn him into a eunuch…either would have pleased her, but she wanted to know what was so important it was making people turn from her.

"Say I hadn't…" her fingers gripped the front of his shirt and pulled him nose to nose with her as she let her magic drift in the air as she continued on with a venom tone. "Enlighten me…" Shaking under her fingers, Nikos nodded.

"It's Jareth, milady…he has announced his future bride!" Her magic snapped out and she dropped Nikos, her only outward sign of shock and fury. Making sure to school her face so as to look complete uninterested, she walked back to her seat. Inside she was seething, all her plans…she could see them flashing before her eyes. She was so close, but this could ruin everything.

"And how is that supposed to make a difference in our plans?" Nikos and Telis looked back and forth from her to each other several times. Oh how she simply wanted to kill them where they sat. 'Surely they would both be better off without those impeding brains of theirs getting in the way…?' she thought darkly, trying to come up with the best way to remove them.

"Well…if he is marrying the Lady Sarah, surely you lost your bet with the Gods? We will not stand against Jareth…that is a losing battle milady." Virden laughed heartily at Telis, his robust chest rumbling with mirth. Virden had always been her favorite, but he was proving his worth today.

"If she had lost the bet, don't you think she would be throwing a holy fit right now you great fool…?" Medb sneered at Nikos and Telis, pleased with Virden's common sense. Unfortunately, Nikos and Telis had had their chance to be loyal to her; Ordin and Jerdom had been far smarter not to have shown up at all. She couldn't touch them in their realms, not yet, but here…here she could and would punish.

With a careless wave of her hand, both Telis and Nikos disappeared. She knew that she had sent them to the dungeon, set for execution that night, but she was pleased once more in the implicit trust of Virden and Helos. The simply sat there watching her, expectantly awaiting their next orders.

"Now that I have learned who is truly loyal to me here is what we do next…." An hour later, she left her conference room, pleased with her new plan. With the help of Virden, it would be the most amusing thing she had done in a century. For now, she just wanted to get back to her room and let Cyric apologize for the way he had acted.

"Cyric…? The meeting is over." Her airy tone was supposed to be dismissive, but when she looked around the room, her temper blazed…there was no one here to dismiss. Where the hell was he? Like a woman searching for a naughty pet, Medb searched around her suite for him, but found nothing.

She sat on the edge of her bed, her mind spinning with all the things she would do to him when he decided to show up. It was then that she finally stopped to think about how he had been acting recently. Cyric had begun to treat her a bit more glibly than he used to. He wasn't treating her like she was the only woman in the world that mattered to him.

Her mouth pursed, well she couldn't have that. He belonged to her until she saw fit to get rid of him. She would simply have to remind him of that fact. With an indignant huff, Medb strode across her room to her boudoir. The doors were flung open without a care to hinges and she gazed upon the contents. No one was allowed in here but her.

Inside there were shelves of potions and all sorts of concoctions. Bottles of all shapes, sizes and colors were filled with mixtures ranging from the most innocent headache remedy to sinister poisons. Medb smiled as she reached for the pink frosted bottle on the third shelf.

The liquid within it was half gone, she realized with a frown. She would have to make some more, but that wasn't her worry at the moment. Medb closed the boudoir with the care of a loving parent before turning and flicking her wrist to conjure up some tea since the little bastard, Cyric, decided that his time was more valuable than hers.

When he showed up, he would be in for the most impressive acting the Underground had seen since the last time she'd had to dose a lover. Tea was poured and dosed with her special brew, the lights were low and she was in a slip of a dress when Cyric decided to grace her with his presence.

"Hello darling…" she crooned as she crossed the room and wrapped her arms around him. The fact that he didn't melt in her arms enraged her deeper than the desertion of supporters had, but she kept herself in check. It wouldn't do to be alone while she waited for Jareth. She would never be alone.

"Hello Medb," he offered with a quick and absent kiss, those ice blue eyes barely skimming over her. His answer was indifferent and infuriating as he unfolded her arms and walked over to the bookshelf to replace the text he had been reading. Medb could all but feel her blood boiling. No one shrugged her off…no one! Reigning in her temper, she reached for the dosed tea, not wanting to wait for his ardor any longer.

"I prepared you tea." She thought her plan would falter as she watched one thick, dark brow raise in surprise and suspicion. If he didn't fall for this, he could easily leave, nothing held him to her and his power was just as great as hers. That had been her mistake. She'd never had a lover with power equal to hers before, but this bastard had tempted her so with his dark, exotic good looks. Just when she thought the tea cup would shatter in her hands, he reached out for it.

"Thank you…" he muttered, still slightly suspect of the liquid within. He sniffed it, which made her cringe inwardly.

"Is there something wrong?" She knew that her potion didn't smell, she made it that way on purpose. All she had to do was play off his worry. When his head shook she forced the tittering laughter from herself, almost feeling like she would retch if she had to keep up this act much longer. "Then drink it silly," she teased as she crossed the room to shut the light out. "Really…you are acting like you think I am going to poison you or something."

As she shut the windows, she thought to herself that she might do just that when Jareth was hers and she no longer needed the company of Cyric. She might just do that indeed, but until then, she would put up with him because she couldn't be alone…WOULDN'T be alone.

**Afternoon's** light was quickly fading as Jeaule was putting the finishing touches on the eyes in her painting. Eyes nearly the color of snow they were so crystalline blue, stared out at her from the canvas. They captured her here as they had the first time she had seen them. She knew she had to stop painting for the night because the light in her bedroom was falling low.

With a quiet and stoic patience, Jeaule cleaned her paintbrushes and placed them all back in their case, followed shortly by her paints. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror and stopped. Never had she painted herself, but as she looked upon herself with an artist's eye, she tried to see what others did.

Her pale white blonde hair was pulled back in its customary pony tail for when she painted, but there was a rouge strand hanging over her forehead that she pushed behind an ear. Her eyes, were they anything spectacular? she wondered. They weren't soft like a spring meadow as Sarah's were, nor were they as mysterious as King Jareth's, but neither were they harsh as two cold sapphires like her sisters. As she took them in, she decided that they were likened to an acorn ready to be cracked or the bark of the oak tree, nothing spectacular, but beautiful in their own right.

Intrigued by her own analysis, she inspected herself further. Smooth features and a heart shaped face were the first impression that people got of her and she reluctantly admitted that people must think her a timid little mouse. It wasn't her fault that she had no one interesting to talk to…and when she did, her sister was a bit overbearing and didn't give her a chance to talk.

People think her demure and sweet…that was fine with Jeaule, for she didn't spend much time in the company of others. She preferred her solitude, but was increasingly disturbed at her thoughts of a certain blue eyed man…

"I can't BELIEVE this is happening to me!" Erina stormed into her Spartan room, in such a rage that she actually sought out the one vase in the room to tip it over, just to hear it shatter. Jeaule rolled her eyes as she waved her hand to fix the vase that her sister had broken too many times for her to count. Erina's temper was something to fear, but not for Jeaule…for Jeaule it was like listening to a whining five year old, but she put on her 'aww-what's-wrong' face and went to deal with her sister.

"What is happening to you this time, oh sister mine?" Erina lunged towards the vase again, but Jeaule picked it up and gave her a chastising look. "How about you just tell me instead of taking it out on my décor?"

"Jareth chose his bride!" Uh oh, her mind warned. This was indeed a frightening topic to bring up. Without Erina screaming it at the top of her lungs, Jeaule could have guessed that his choice had been the Lady Sarah.

"Oh?" was all she offered her sister as an answer, knowing that nothing else need be said, her sister was going on a tirade no matter what Jeaule said to her.

"How could he choose her!? How could Maesia LET him chose her!?" Jeaule conjured her sister some tea and sat down to her table, calmly pouring her sister a glass.

"I don't think it was much up to her, dear." Erina spun around on Jeaule, but she didn't flinch. She was so used to her sister's outbursts that she knew Erina would calm herself in a few minutes and then just go to stewing about it for…oh…the rest of her life.

"All those years! All those years, kissing Maesia's ass…for NOTHING!" This was news to Jeaule though and her eyes snapped up at her sister, shocked and appalled at Erina's comments.

"Erina! Maesia has never been anything but nice to us, but surely you knew that you would never have a chance with King Jareth…?" Erina's dark, sapphire eyes flashed at Jeaule, but she could sense her calming as Erina sat next to her. "We weren't born into society, we will be lucky to get a Lord, Erina. I know you have been infatuated with the King, but you couldn't have hoped for…"

"LADY Sarah," Erina drawled, demeaning Sarah's title, "wasn't born to this at ALL and she is marrying the King. She was a HUMAN for the love of the Gods!" Reluctantly, Erina reached out for the tea cup Jeaule offered, seething, but otherwise calm.

"The Lady Sarah is Champion of the Labyrinth…" Erina slammed her hand on the table, cutting Jeaule off.

"Don't give me that blather!" she spat, shocking Jeaule further…she had never seen her sister like this. Truly, Jeaule nearly shivered when the wicked…almost evil look came into her sister's eyes. "I would give anything…DO anything to be in that hybrid Fae's shoes right now."

And she would, Jeaule thought with an inner frown and quiver. Personally, Jeaule thought with a secret smile, she thought the Lady Sarah would make a marvelous Queen. Far better than some she could think of, she thought with a smirk as she took another sip of tea.

**(A/N: Well, there it is, hope you guys enjoyed it! If you did, tell me so in a review! Those things are like crack for me, I love them! And so the scheming begins! I would like to thank those who reviewed the last chapter and gave me less need to scheme up a new story! Brea (my enthusiastic new reader…adore you!), darklady26 (My constant source of inspiration), Kerichi (my fanfic guru bff! 3 ya), phedre87 (Hope I keep up your Jareth fascination!) and saz89 (Hope I keep you as interested in this story as ever!). Thank you all for reading and I can't wait to get your reviews!**


	15. Morning Passions

**Disclaimer: I own none of this…blah, blah, blah. You guys know the drill. OC's are mine, but if you recognize them from the movie then…DUH…they aren't mine. **

**!!!NOTE!!!**** This chapter is a VERY brief chapter seeing as it is mature content. If you wish to not read mature content, then I suggest skipping this chapter and waiting for chapter 16 (which should be up in a day or two). All you will miss in this chapter is Sarah being astounded that he would take her back and then taking a little initiative of her own! wink**

Rogue beams of light found their way through the thick velvet curtains, illuminating tiny dust motes in the air and, ever determined, snaking their way over Sarah's face. Wrinkling her nose in protest, Sarah lifted a hand to block the unwanted disturbance to her sleep and turned her body only to come in contact with a very warm, very naked Jareth. She forgot about the light streaming through the curtains and felt her face flush as she thought of the previous night.

Last night, they had been bound together by more than the strange unknown link they'd shared since that drugged night in the crystal ballroom. Last night they had been bound by the promise of marriage. Last night, she had truly been his.

He'd been as slow and thorough as he'd been the first time, she thought as she allowed her fingers to push away a stray strand of strikingly blonde hair from his forehead. Watching him sleep was like watching a tiger at rest, always on alert to his slightest movements and wary of what would happen should the animal awaken. It was hard for her not to think of what it would be like if the animal would awaken…if he wasn't as calm and controlled.

As she gazed down at his sleeping face, still smooth and ethereal as he laid dreaming, she let her head rest against the pillow again. Her imagination began to drift to its darker corners as visions of Jareth pressing her against a wall in heated passion begin to fill her mind. Her vision blurred slightly as her eyelids grew heavy again, but she didn't take her eyes from her sleeping love. Against her will, drowsy lids fluttered down.

When they opened again, she was in the gilded throne room, its harsh gold, white and black décor startling her. The black and white swirling marble was cold beneath her bare feet and her chemise clung to skin that shivered against the sudden and suffocating unearthly cold. Where was everyone? Why was she alone here in this room of all places?

The walls seemed to close in around her, the golden griffin thrones seemed to grow and dwarf her. She didn't belong here…what was she doing here? Her heart seized in her chest as panic set in. There didn't seem to be air…she couldn't breathe. She shouldn't be here. Sarah spun around, prepared to run even though she didn't know her destination, and smacked straight into something soft and yet firm.

With a sore bottom and a bruised ego, Sarah glanced up at her barrier…it was Jareth, in wonderfully romantic medieval wear. Everything seemed to warm as she looked at him, the room becoming more inviting now that he was there with her. Why did everything only seem right when he was with her?

Her eyes scanned his attire, silently praising her days in the theater for the knowledge of his garments. The dark chocolate leather jerkin fit to his lithe body like a dream with its worn silver buckles running up the front that her fingers itched to undo. Sarah's eyes drifted down, taking in the black leather pants that left little to the imagination, though Sarah no longer needed imagination to know what was hidden beneath the soft sewn leather.

"Dressing me again, love?" Her brows furrowed, this was her dream, he shouldn't be talking…he should only be touching. Since it was a dream, Sarah found herself bolder than she might have been if she were awake and pulled him into a kiss that her body had been craving since the moment she saw him. "Well, if you are dressing me," he said with a smile as he pulled her back, "then we have to find you something suitable to match." She looked down and found herself in a sweeping suede dress.

It looked similar to something a wench would have worn, a tight black suede corset enhancing her barely blouse covered bust and a long, surprisingly heavy, brown suede skirt flowing from under the corset. Again her brows furrowed. Why was he clothing her in her own dream instead of ripping the little chemise from her? This was her dream wasn't it…wasn't this were her desires were supposed to come true without her having to embarrass the hell out of herself?

"What is wrong, love…?" Jareth seemed just as confused. Not wanting to get confused in her own dream, Sarah pulled him to her, crushing her lips to his in a silent demand to this dream Jareth to simply take her. She wanted to feel him desperate for her and not have him hold back…not have him be calm and torturous about it.

"Stop talking damn it," she ordered as her impatient hands worked at his jerkin, prying it and the undershirt from his body as fast as she could. Her mind was a set on a single goal and nothing would bar her this time, nothing would stop her from making him want her fast, hard and now. That seemed to be all he needed to hear, because something in his eyes snapped, something feral and primitive took control of her love.

She was swept from her feet in one fluid motion and his hands wrapped her legs around his waist. Her arms wrapped desperately around his neck as his pulled her ever closer to his body. A low growl emanated from his chest and sent her senses into frenzy, this was what she wanted. She wanted this primal need, this animal hunger from him…she wanted to be desired.

Jareth was carrying her towards one of the golden thrones and was nearly going mad with his need for her. He didn't know where this dream had come from, but he would rip the stars from the sky in order to remain asleep. This fiery temptress in his arms was Sarah, his Sarah, but how had she found her way into his dreams? Did she know that they were sharing this dream together?

When she told him to shut up with that 'take me now' look in her eyes…he no longer cared. He wanted this just as much as she obviously did and it was a dark delight to see that his Sarah had this enigmatically sensuous side to her. It fired his blood and he knew that he wanted to be awake for this. A dream wouldn't satisfy him the way feeling her straining over him in real life would so he caught her eye and sent out his magic.

When his eyes opened, he was delighted to see her straddling him on their bed…a very confused and passion glazed look in her eyes.

"Jareth…?" He stood up, making sure she stayed twined around him, his gaze intent and ardent on hers. Hell bent on not letting her more proper side take over her mind now that she was awake, he put a finger to her lips and let the animal grin spread over his face.

"Stop talking damn it." He watched Sarah's face heat as she realized that it wasn't simply her dream, but theirs and then glaze over again as she realized that all of it had been real in a sense. In a voice that bordered on a growl even to his own ears, Jareth pushed on. "Do you want to finish that dream of ours, love?" Desire flashed in those deep emerald green eyes of hers and he teleported them both to the Grand Throne Room.

The room wasn't even what she was thinking about when it materialized around her. She knew that the doors slammed shut and she knew that they locked, but she didn't hear them…didn't care. Sarah felt their magic spin together in a vicious torrent of fervor around them, felt it ignite the candles in the chandeliers, felt the sudden warmth and the soft light glittering off the marble floor, but she didn't see it…didn't care. All she knew was Jareth, all she felt was him.

He thought he would go mad as his raven haired temptress pressed herself against him, her lips eagerly coaxing him to take without thought, to ravish. Jareth nearly started laughing when he reached to her and felt the corset where he had expected nothing more than the thin silk of her chemise. Apparently, she wanted to finish the dream in detail. The thought had another anxious growl ripping from his throat as he changed their course. So his love wanted to be taken did she? He wouldn't let her down then.

The heady sent of melting wax and their own heat mixed in the air and had Sarah in a whirlwind of emotions as he changed his course. No longer was he heading for the golden thrones, but for a mere wall. Her mind cheered in victory, he wasn't going to be slow, he was going to ravish her against the cool marble walls of his throne room. Emboldened, Sarah trailed her kisses down his neck and bit at his shoulder lightly, letting her fingernails scrape down his back, leaving subtle red trails behind and eliciting another primal growl from the man she was wrapped around.

Her hips moved seductively so sex rubbed sex as she felt her back press against the marble, Jareth's body pinning her in place. When her eyes met his again her mouth fell open at the blind passion in his mismatched gaze. How had she worked him to this point? Why did she care?

Need pounded through his veins with anvil shocks. Sarah was obliterating him, her legs gripped so tightly around him that the smooth curves and tight planes of her body molded to his.

"Sarah…." She merely answered him with an impatient moan, her hands snaking into his hair, her lips savaging his throat. He called upon his magic blindly, dissolving the leather pants from his body but leaving her dress…it would be delightfully erotic to make love to her with it on.

His hands fumbled with the folds of her skirt, wanting it out of his way…the last barrier between them. When he felt her heat against his lions, he felt another growl ripple through his chest before he lifted her arms above her head, pinning them as he captured her gaze.

When his eyes met hers, she knew what was coming and still gasped at the shock of it as he thrust into her. Without care to fragility, she was ravished, cherished, destroyed. Her head fell back in abandon as she clung to him desperately, her skin damp with their shared passion.

A feral snarl vibrated in his throat as he yanked her hips higher, thrust himself deeper. He could feel the beads of sweat gathering at his temples as his mouth claimed her throat, marking her as he sucked on the warm, salty skin. Her scent nearly drove him crazy, their magic mixing with the bracing scent of their lovemaking.

Jareth could no longer distinguish her features, could barely hear her. He desperately wanted to see her face, to see and hear every shout as he drove her further over the edge. But the animal inside of him that he had tried to keep in check around her had taken over and it was blind, deaf…insatiable.

He could see nothing but the red haze of passion and her outline straining, arching before him. Then even that blacked out as the vicious climax tore through him and emptied him.

**Once** they both gained back some semblance of rational thought, Sarah found herself sitting on the floor of the cold marble room feeling loose and incredibly, wonderfully used. Sometime during the course of their lovemaking, her dress had dissolved. She didn't know if that was her doing or his and the way she felt at the moment, she didn't care. Jareth sat next to her, looking as naked and spent as she knew she must. She couldn't help but lean over on his shoulder and smile.

"I seduced you." She said it almost in wonder and her smile spread as weak laughter drifted from behind the blonde curtain of hair next to her.

"Sarah…you damn near killed me." Without a care now, Sarah threw her head back and laughed.

"GODS! I can't believe I seduced you," she shouted, her voice echoing against the marble walls around her. A strong arm wrapped around her, pulling her closer to him as they were teleported back to their bedchamber.

"Completely and thoroughly, love." He sounded so worn out and that thrilled Sarah in a way she had never known before. It was because of her, because he had wanted her so badly…desired her.

"I didn't know that I could do that to you…didn't think I had the guts." She sat up and stretched her body out before him, feeling shockingly at ease with her nudity around him for the first time. "It's…invigorating." Her body was still humming from their lovemaking as she stared at him.

He was almost annoyingly perfect, his alabaster skin all but glowing in the moonlight as he threw back the beds curtains and crossed to the bar. A whiskey of some sort was poured and tipped back with a cool elegance that she admired. It was amazing how completely at ease he was with himself. Quite to her surprise, she felt desire coil like a snake in her loins and her eyes went wide. What had this Fae done to her, she thought with a wicked smile.

"Jareth, I need to ask a favor of you." Hair that seemed to be perpetually in styled disarray swept over his shoulder as he turned to her.

"What darling?" She crooked a finger and continued.

"You have to be closer," she purred. An almost egotistically knowing smile crossed his face as he walked to her, stopping halfway across the room from her.

"Close enough?" he asked, raising his arms to motion around him. She shook her head slowly and beckoned with a finger again before patting the bed beside her. By the time he sat beside her, she smiled at the sight that he was ready for what she was about to ask him.

"I want you to want me like that again…" she grinned up at him. "If it wouldn't be too much of an annoyance to you." His fingers played up the smooth skin of her back and gripped at the back of her neck, pulling her closer to him.

"I think it can be arranged without too much trouble."

"Good, and while you're at it do you think, well…" she blushed a bit for the first time since they had come back to the room and whispered something in his ear that shot all the blood in his body straight to his loins.

"That is very inappropriate for a future Queen, but…" he mused as he leaned her back on the bed. "Since I AM your king…."

**(A/N: Hope you all enjoyed this chapter, as short as it was. I promised a few readers that I would always post these mature scenes as separate chapters so they could skip it if they so wished so here it is on its own. I will thank reviewers at the end of the next chapter since not everyone will be reading this chapter! Thanks guys and I would still love reviews from those that DO read this chapter. The next chapter should be up in a couple days!)**


	16. Masked Intentions

**Disclaimer: I own none of this save for the characters unique to me (Erina, Jeaule, Medb, Maesia, Cyric…etc) and the original storyline. I make no money from this, but I think this has all been established by now. I survive solely on the wonderful reviews left for me!**

**Jareth** stared out over his kingdom from his perch on the balcony. It stretched as far as the eye could see and if you sat and watched, you could be captivated for hours at the ever changing world that was the Labyrinth. Trees stretched and grew tall in hours, some in minutes only to tumble, dry and dead, to the ground, becoming new barriers for unsuspecting travelers. Walls shifted and crumbled to block of trails or to create new paths.

It was a feast for the eyes to watch. Well, for some people, Jareth thought with a sigh. He would never understand those who wanted to destroy his Labyrinth, people like Medb. What did they have against its twisted beauty and varied delights? Sarah loved it, he thought with a grin, realizing again what a part of his life she was becoming. Rarely ten minutes could pass without him thinking of his Sarah.

She would be his wife.

That phrase still made him smile. Something he had fought so hard for would be his again. Sarah was going to be his wife, he had fought for her the way he had fought for the beautiful world below him and now both would be his. The only two things he ever truly loved.

So much had happened to her since the announcement of their engagement a week ago. She spent most of the days in training with his mother, learning everything she would need to know to pass as a potential queen at the dinner gala tonight. He had told her that it wouldn't be easy, but she had insisted on learning everything that was needed.

Not that he much cared, but it was delightful to have her come back to the room after his mothers daily torturous etiquette lessons and hear her stew over them. Sarah had taken to the training with surprising ease, no matter how much she moaned about them and had become a most delicate lady when in public. Jareth had to make sure to praise his mother on her tutelage, for it was most impressive.

But Jareth was pleased that when they were alone together and there was no one to impress, Sarah unfolded herself from the demure lady his mother had transformed her into and was herself. She was Sarah when she was with him alone or those she was coming to love, like Maesia. For anyone else she slipped on the Lady Sarah mask with an ease that would have made anyone think that she'd been doing it for years.

He warmed at the thought of his soon to be queen, as he always did when he thought of her. His training had also been going well. Sarah was coming along with her teleporting, though she still seemed to have a nasty habit of becoming a bit too cocky for her own good at times. One thing he was pleased with was her conjuring.

Her conjuring was nearly flawless now. Her last mishap had been in conjuring a rubber chicken instead of a roasted one for dinner four nights ago. Never, Jareth thought with a private chuckle, had he laughed so hard and never would he let her live it down. The fact that she knew that and accepted it jokingly only made him love the woman all the more.

With a timing she seemed to be growing ever better at, Sarah walked through their bedroom door with a groan. Jareth left the dimming sunlight and cooling breeze to the candle lit beauty of their room. He'd prepared everything to soothe his love after her queenly training. She wasn't in the best of moods when she finished with them.

"I can't believe everything that I have to learn just to have dinner without embarrassing you." Jareth smiled at her as she flopped on the bed and laid back, manicured fingertips massaging her temples. "Did you know," she asked, irritated emerald eyes catching his. "That we spent an hour on napkins…? NAPKINS!" Easing her up off the bed, he walked her into the bathroom where he had prepared a hot bath to soothe her frayed nerves. "No one must touch the holy napkins till YOU do…then and ONLY then may we mere peons touch ours."

He let her talk, merely grinning and nodding as he felt necessary as he eased himself into the hot water. In a routine they had perfected over the week, Sarah eased out of her clothing, settling in to rest against his chest. Using his magic, he pinned her hair up out of the way so his fingers could knead the tense muscles of her neck, cupping the warm water and letting it glide over stress stiffened muscles.

"And don't forget Sarah," she continued, mimicking his mother quite convincingly. "…because the Gods know the world would end if I did…you unfold it all the way ONLY if it is a small luncheon napkin, at dinners you will have a large dinner napkin that you fold in half on your lap. And always remember…fold it lengthwise." He let her head fall forward as she splashed the warm lavender scented water on her face. "I wouldn't want to offend the fragile lords and ladies with an improperly folded napkin now would I?" Jareth chuckled at her fiery temper and kissed her neck before resting his chin on her shoulder.

"You are the one that wanted to learn, love." He let his hands wander, quite used to this temper by now and knowing what to do to soothe it. It only took a few moments for her head to loll back on his shoulder as she savored his touch.

"I know, I know…it's just, oh by the Gods Jareth, there is CUP etiquette!" His lips smiled against the damp, fragrant skin of her neck.

"Oh really?"

"Don't play that with me," she teased, splashing him playfully. "You know all this crap too!"

"Yes, but I rarely think about it anymore, it's all second nature to me now." He felt her body relaxing as his fingers played over the glorious planes of her body.

"I never knew that you HAD to put your cup back in the same spot every time so you don't 'disturb the visual presence of the table'. Thank the gods that was something I had always done…probably saved me about thirty minutes of training." Jareth laughed again as his fingers trailed down her abdomen, tickling her and eliciting a chuckle from her as well. "Stop it, Jareth! I'm trying to bitch here." His lips found her ear and nibbled on the lobe.

"You are doing a marvelous job too, love." Sarah playfully swatted away his head. "Come, come…you know you love it." The impetuous huff he heard made him cluck his tongue at her. "As much as you whine I know you …the silverware was your favorite wasn't it?" He finished, his voice dripping with sarcasm. She groaned and dropped her head back against his shoulder, but he sensed her smile as she lost herself to his caresses.

"Don't even get me started on the damn silverware…"

**As** she finished her journal entry she made a note that a new one might need to be purchased soon. The embroidered 'J' on the front of the dark leather cover was fraying and would soon fall out completely, not to mention that nearly all the pages were filled with all the things she couldn't tell any other soul on earth. Jeaule closed the aging pages just as her sister came stomping into her room in her now normal tempest of fury.

Jeaule used her magic to seal and hide her journal before her sister could see it. It was a horrible thing to think and it made her cringe to do so, but there were things in that journal that this strange new creature calling herself Erina could use against her. Truth hurt though, the harsh reality that her sister was changing into someone she wasn't proud of anymore and it was all happening right before her eyes.

Tempers that seemed to ebb and flood like the tides before were now erratic and often unprovoked. Erina proved that by tipping over one of her tables with a drinking goblet on it, sending the glass shattering over the stone floor. The strange thing was that now, Erina didn't even seem aware that she was doing these things. It was like her actions were separate from her mind. That thought unsettled Jeaule far too much for her to even want to think about that anymore. If something happened to Erina, she would be alone, her sister was all she had left. So she stayed calm as ever, though, in her mind, she wanted to slap her sister until she came to her senses.

"What is it now, dear sister?" she asked, her voice demure as she fixed the glass, a wave of déjà vu sweeping over her. Jeaule ignored it though, that was becoming commonplace when she cleaned up her sisters messes.

"We have to dress her now!" Jeaule frowned and rolled her eyes.

"We have been doing that since she was brought here and Maesia assigned us to her." Jeaule righted the table and grabbed Erina's hand as it reached for it again. "No. You need to stop this." Erina seemed shocked and rightly so, even Jeaule was shocked at the force in her words. Never did she stand up to her twin, it was simply known that Erina all but ran things for the both of them. Jeaule thought back to her last entry in her journal and smiled.

"Well, well…little Jeaule is growing a backbone, huh?" Jeaule simply chuckled at the unnerving distain in her sisters' voice. "Don't do it to me anymore." It was a quite, sharp command that had Jeaule even more on edge with this…thing…that was taking over her sister. It was horrible to feel frightened of her own sister. She needed to change the subject and now.

"So who is on the guest list?" she asked as they headed down the hallway on their way to the Lady Sarah. Jeaule thought it was romantic that they already stayed in the same room together, damn to tradition. They were in love and that was beautiful to her. She was so lost in her daydreaming over the Lady Sarah and King Jareth that she tuned out the guest list her sister was rattling off. That is, until her sister scoffed again.

"I don't know why it takes a week to plan a simple engagement dinner. It's not like the damn thing is even a ball." With a private roll of her eyes, Jeaule explained what Erina already knew.

"Lady Sarah…"

"Don't call her that in front of me!" Erina shouted, cutting her off and fueling an anger that Jeaule had been fighting for a while now.

"LADY Sarah," she continued, earning a vicious scowl from her sister. "Wanted to have lessons with Maesia so that everything would know everything she had to do appropriately tonight." Another huff came from Erina.

"Stupid crossbreed is too stupid to be elegant at dinner." Jeaule stopped in the middle of the hallway and steeled her back. She liked the Lady Sarah and was getting increasingly tired of hearing her sister bad mouth her.

"She doesn't know our customs Erina, she wants everything to be perfect, I don't blame her."

"Perfect!?" her sister shouted with a hearty laugh which twisted into another of her nasty scowls. "Perfect would be her not becoming Queen…"

"Finish the guest list please?" Jeaule interrupted her sister, much to her obvious displeasure, but Jeaule didn't care. This new 'backbone' as her sister called it was…fun…it was liberating in a way she had never known. Erina rattled off a few more names, none of them important and then started snickering again. "What is the matter with you…?"

"Medb sent a messenger to tell everyone that she would be happy to come." Jeaule furrowed her brow.

"So…?" Erina smirked, looking almost proud of Medb, which was another tally in the creepy column of her sisters new quirks.

"So…? She wasn't invited." Jeaule groaned, this would be interesting. Though, if Medb comes, then…he was sure to come. "Everyone was simply hoping that she wouldn't come, but she knew about it somehow and wasn't going to let them get away with it." Jeaule felt herself becoming increasingly sick to her stomach as she listened to her sister talk about that hideous woman as if she were starting to look up to her.

"But won't she try to do something awful at the dinner party…?" The laughter that came from Erina, made her stomach turn again as she watched her sister knock on the door to the King's chambers.

"I truly hope so…"

**Minutes** alone were hard to come by lately, let alone the two hours he had right now while Medb was preparing for the engagement dinner tonight. Cyric leaned against the balustrade of the balcony as he looked over Medb's lands. They weren't beautiful or mysterious like Jareth's or even his own. How many times had he looked over this view and cringed? Every tree had been ripped down, every pond filled in to make more room for her suitors to massacre each other in. And for what?

Nothing, that's what.

Why did Medb want to go to this party? He couldn't figure it out, couldn't wrap his mind around it. Truly told, he couldn't seem to wrap his mind around anything lately. It was strange beyond strange for him to realize…if only foggily…that when Medb wasn't around, that seemed to be the only time his mind would focus on something else. Cyric knew that he still had control enough of his mind to know that this feeling was true. Somehow loving her now felt wrong, something was terribly wrong about what was going on.

He'd realized it three days ago, the first time she had left his side since, well…over a week ago he was sure of that. It seemed that as long as she was around, his mind was simply a whirlwind for her, telling him to be everything to her and nothing to himself. What bothered him the most was the castle healer.

Cyric had gone to the aging old woman, who had always made him feel a bit nervous in the first place. There was something…almost sinister about the way she smiled sometimes that gave him shivers down his spine. She had told him, with an unconvincing grin, that nothing was wrong with him, he was fit as a fiddle and acting exactly as he should be.

That was the clincher for Cyric…when she had said that he was acting exactly as he should be…like she was talking to a dog who would dare defy its master. That was when he had decided to talk to Jareth's healer during the engagement dinner. He could fake a stomach ache easily enough and head over to the healer.

With a heavy sigh, Cyric puts on the finery that Medb had laid out for him, mind cringing at the knowledge that he will have to face her again soon and lose this fragile foothold that he has gained. It made him weary, this rollercoaster his mind went through, but there was not a thing he could do about it until he figured out what was going on.

When he entered Medb's chambers he must have shocked her more than she him because she slammed the heavy wooden doors of her boudoir so fast, he hadn't the chance to see inside the mysterious, locked cupboard. Normally, that would have made him think, but as he caught sight of her, he no longer cared.

"Are you ready milady?" He asked with a low, courteous bow. Her face, which had been etched with worry smoothed at his words and her teeth flashed with a smile.

"I am, but we must wait for Virden before we can leave for the dinner gala." His brow creased with confusion.

"But milady, he is not invited to the dinner, why must we wait for him?" Something he had said had upset her and he tried desperately to back peddle, not wanting to upset his lady.

"Because I need to know that everything is ready to make sure that our plan unfolds correctly!" Her dark hair cascaded as she spun around, grabbing a bottle of perfume and dabbing her wrists forcefully. Something in the back of his mind was screaming at him to snap out of it, to find a way to warn Jareth and Sarah, but her scent was intoxicating. "I think you need another cup of tea before we leave." Her voice was suddenly silky smooth again and it caught him off guard.

His mind tried to whir into action, so forcefully so, that a headache began to form. She seemed anxious to get him to drink it and yet apprehensive at the same time. It was almost as if him drinking this cup of tea was imperative to her. There was something about the tea…? Before his mind could register what that could be, he felt the cool rim of the tea cup against his lips, but after the tiniest of sips, his mind triumphed.

It might just be a win of a small battle in this war, but it was one which would turn the tides…he hoped.

"Surely that isn't all the tea you want?" Medb's voice was almost shaky as he set down the tea cup.

"I'm not really thirsty right now, darling. I had a lot to drink before I came in here." He could see in her eyes that she wanted to force it on him, but she wouldn't, somehow he knew that she wouldn't. If she did, that would give something away. Instead of forcing him to do as she wished, he saw her icy sheet of anger place itself between them. He could deal with her anger…as long as his mind wasn't forced to love her.

Medb completely ignored him the next five minutes they were waiting for Virden. Not that Cyric minded overmuch. It had been strange when she had broken eye contact with him…it had felt like something let him go almost. He would have to remember that for when he saw Jareth's healer. When Virden arrived, Medb nearly draped herself over him. Was it a piteous attempt at making Cyric jealous? His conflicting reactions angered him more than the actual jealousy that he felt as she ignored him.

"Have you obtained that bitch's little friend?" The big bulky man named Virden nodded, though that was an amazing feat since he appeared to have no neck because of his girth.

"When the would be queen comes for him, all will be taken care of." Cyric made a mental note to find a way to warn Jareth and Sarah about this. Painful though it was to work through whatever Medb had done to him, he wasn't about to let Sarah be harmed because of Medb's malice. She must have noticed his silent musings for Medb came to him and caught his eye again, though he casually tried to avoid it, and he was lost.

**Guests** were starting to arrive and Jeaule and Erina were always the ones to seat them. Jeaule wandered back to the main door after seating Lord Baldric and Lady Adelaide to find Medb walking through the door in one of her usual gaudy outfits. It was the man whose arm she was on that caught her attention though.

No painting she could produce could ever completely capture the raw beauty of him, the almost haunted look in his eye. He looked dashing in his black silken tunic, chocolate waves of hair framing his face, with those mysterious blue eyes, and falling over the soft material like a lovers caress. She felt her face flush slightly when he looked over at her and caught her eye.

There was something strange about what played over his face in those few seconds. At first, he seemed confused, almost in pain as it seemed he tried to remember her, but the smile that lit his eyes a moment later made her lower hers in modesty. That one look had warmed her in ways she had never known before and it was the moment that Erina pushed past her, claiming them and walking them away for seating.

With a silent curse to her sister for wanting to be near that awful woman, Jeaule smiled up at the next guests to enter and lead them to their seats, never taking her eyes from Cyric for more than a moment.

It was because of this close watch that she noticed the subtle exchange of a piece of paper from Cyric to her sister. Jeaule glanced around, checking to see if anyone but herself had seen the exchange, but it appeared that no one had. She watched her sister unfold the paper as she walked away, watched the wicked smile capture her normally beautiful features and make them ugly, frightening, before she tucked the note away in her bosom.

Whatever could have been so important or devious enough to make her new, terrifying sister so happy?

"Ahem." The Lord that she was sitting…supposed to be sitting…brought her out of her reverie. Jeaule blushed prettily and offered her apologies before gesturing him to his seat and walking back to finish her duties. She would have to wonder on the secret note later, no matter how much her mind wanted to know now.

Seated to the right of Maesia, and her sister to the right of her, Jeaule was pleased when the dinner began. She had been worried that Medb would try something, but the woman seemed amicable enough as the courses came and went. What was she up to, or was she really going to let this go and let Jareth have his happiness? Something in her gut told her no. Medb was being bizarrely good natured and it was making everyone at the table a bit uncomfortable.

Jeaule ate her dinner with the airy grace that was expected of her, not taking notice of her sister's stolen glances at Sarah, as if she were waiting for something. Jeaule always seemed to go into autopilot when at a fancy gala dinner, picking up her silverware from the outside in as courses came and went.

But this time, she was shocked into a stupor several times as she looked up and caught Cyric staring at her. She didn't know how to react when she would catch him looking at her and then hastily look away when he was caught like a little school boy. Every time she caught him doing this, she merely felt her face flush and she would look away. She had been trained in matters of being a lady, never had she been taught how to flirt. In this, she was completely lost.

After the third course, she was relieved of having to figure out what to do with the man because she saw him stand, hand over his stomach and a pained face. Obviously he wasn't feeling well and wanted to see the healer for something to make himself feel better. Her brows furrowed in irritated anger as Medb simply brushed him off with little care. If Cyric belonged to her she would take more care of him, not treat him as a mere pet. The thought made her blush furiously enough for Maesia to lean over.

"What is the matter with you tonight my dear? You have been blushing every five minutes." Jeaule loved Maesia as a mother, since she had never known her own, in her mind, she had taken Maesia in as hers.

"Oh nothing, my mind is elsewhere I imagine." Crimson painted lips tilted in amusement as Maesia patted her on the back.

"Good for you, it's about time." That merely brought out another fresh blush to her cheeks which pulled forth delightfully merry laughter from Maesia.

It was a good ten minutes and almost a full course later when Jeaule noticed a guard come over to whisper in Lady Sarah's ear. The perturbed look that spread over the Lady's face was a sure sign that something she wasn't pleased of had happened. Jeaule heard the light chuckle from her sister beside her and turned her attention to her.

"Why the laughter?" A dark look was settled in her sister's eyes as she watched Sarah leave the room.

"All my troubles might soon be over" was her quizzical answer. That answer didn't sit well with Jeaule, the corrupt quirk of Erina's lip, the down right evil look in her eyes caused Jeaule to call upon her seldom used magic.

She sent a message in one of her thin, weak crystals to Jareth. Crossing her fingers under the table, she prayed to the gods that he received her warning. When his face looked startled and she saw his eyes scanning something, she knew it had worked. She watched his face change, simmering fury apparent in his eyes and the veins at his temples. With a quick apology to his guests, he excused himself with a quick, subtle nod of appreciation sent her way.

**Confused** irritation swept through her when the guard had told her that Hoggle hadn't wanted to interrupt the important party. That was so silly of him. He was her good friend; surely he knew that he was welcome there? Hadn't he received her invitation?

Apparently, Hoggle needed her help with something that had happened, something that had gone terribly wrong. Being the friend that she was, she had left her engagement party to go see if there was something she could do, even though something felt very strange about the whole thing.

She felt like one of those stupid girls in the horror movies that she always used to yell at for going off alone or following stupid noises that they should have known better to avoid, but still she walked on. Still she walked into the abandoned and sparsely lit grand stair foyer and called for Hoggle. When she heard a startled gasp from the shadows, she should have run, but she didn't.

"Sarah…" it was Hoggle, no mistaking, but why was he hiding in the shadows? Was he that frightened of her now or was something else wrong?

"Hoggle, come out of the shadows, this is ridiculous." Again she heard that frightened little yelp he seemed so fond of making. "What is wrong with you Hoggle!? Come out of there."

"No!" There was something in his voice, something so strange and almost warning, that made her turn around and head back to the gala. That was, until she heard the laughter. It was a deep, haughty laughter and because of it, she knew that she wouldn't get away in time.

"Where do you think you're going little queen?" Sarah turned and gasped as she saw the mountain of a man stepping out of the shadows. He had a nasty looking knife…sword…whatever in his hand and he didn't look beyond using it. "You aren't going to ruin my lady's plans you little human upstart." She had to find out what she could…had to try to fight for herself.

"And just who might your lady be?" Sarah could hear Hoggle sobbing, telling her to run, but her back steeled. This was going to be her home soon, her kingdom and she wasn't about to start off her carrier by running OR dying. The man was all dressed in black, obviously to help him hide in the shadows he had just stepped out of. A vicious looking scar on his face showed her that this probably wasn't the first time he had tried something like this.

"Why should I tell you crossbreed?" His voice oozed distain and she wondered just what the hell she had done to piss this guy off or…his lady…oh, her mind flashed with the knowledge of what was happening.

"You don't need to, Medb planned this didn't she?!" His raucous laughter gave her all the answer she needed. "Well, you can tell your lady that she is no longer welcome in this kingdom. If either myself or Jareth or any of the subjects of this kingdom ever see her here again…" The laughter cut short and he started towards her.

"What…? What are you going to do?" He raised the knife in the air and lunged for her. Something strange took over her at that moment. She felt the rush of her magic, but didn't consciously call upon it, but in a flash of blinding bluish white light, the massive frame of the man flew across the room. He slammed against the staircase, the stone railing crumbling from the force with which he hit it.

Common sense told her that he should have been knocked out, but when the dust from the impact cleared, she saw the shock registered clearly in his eyes. He was about to get up when another blast of power, red tinged and angry looking, seemed to chain around him. Not a second later, Jareth appeared next to her in his usual shower of glitter.

"Are you ok?" His voice was level and almost monotone, but she saw the concern and raw fury in his eyes, she was about to see a very pissed off Jareth. Getting her bearings back, Sarah nodded quickly and used her magic to conjure up fire in the grand chandelier and to torches lining the walls.

"Hoggle!" she shouted when she noticed her friend, bound and bleeding on the floor. "Jareth…?" Mismatched eyes glanced over at her friend and nodded once before focusing back on the behemoth in red magic chains.

"Who was it Sarah…?" She knew that he meant who sanctioned this attack on her and she answered him in the same cold fury that steeped from him.

"Medb." His eyes flared behind blonde hair and he summoned her forth, mid bite while Sarah ran to check on Hoggle. She quickly assessed that he was ok and told him to stay quiet for a moment, turning her eyes to the scene unfolding before her.

"What is the meaning of this?" For all her clever acting, her eyes held the truth, she was enraged that things hadn't transpired as she wished they would. Jareth closed in on her like a tiger on its prey.

"You dared try to assassinate my future queen!" Jareth's anger was nearly palpable in the air around them, pulsing like some vapid creature of the night in search of blood. Gone was the light air around Medb, now Sarah saw her for her true self, the conniving, heartless bitch that Jareth had told her stories of.

"I don't understand why it didn't work either." Her voice was like a cold chill on a summer day, unexpected and disquieting, but Sarah knew she couldn't cower in the corner like a helpless child. She stepped from her spot at Hoggle's side and took her new post at Jareth's.

"Because you underestimated me Medb." Icy blue eyes tried to stab into her very soul, but Sarah stood firm.

"Never call me by my name PEASENT…you will call me Your Highness." Perhaps it was the dark fury coming from Jareth that gave her strength, but she actually took a step towards the woman.

"I will never give you that honorific, nor will I ever bow to you." She could feel her magic pulsing around her, wanting to lash out at this woman, but she held it in check, though it taxed her to do so. "I am going to marry Jareth because I love him and he loves me and there is NOTHING you can do about that!" She saw the shocked, almost outraged look in the icy depths of Medb's eyes and it gave her strength. None of them knew that far away, Morrigan was screaming at how close they had just come. "So, as I was saying to your pathetic henchman…if either myself, Jareth or any subject of this kingdom EVER sees you or HIM," she jabbed a finger in the direction of the mountain of a man, "in this kingdom again, they will be killed on sight!" Sarah felt Jareth's hand on her shoulder and knew he was proud of her without having to see the smile that was plastered on his face.

"You heard my fiancée, Medb. You and your crony have exactly five seconds to follow her orders…or face MY wrath." His fury had subsided, she could feel that. Now pride and gloating were at the forefront of his emotions. Medb pierced Sarah with another loathe filled glare before grabbing hold of her colleague.

"This isn't over crossbreed" were her last chilling words before the two disappeared. Jareth grabbed her and wrapped her in his arms so tightly, she thought he might break her in two.

"Did you mean what you said Sarah?"

"Every word, if she even THINKS about coming back here, I will kill her myself." She felt his chest rumble with laughter before he pulled her back and cupped her face in his hands.

"I meant about loving me." He seemed so unsure, was he really that insecure of her love? Sarah grabbed his pendant and pulled him down so his eyes were level with hers.

"Of course I did Jareth, more than you know." She brushed her lips over his, a mere teasing sensation. "Was I right about you loving me?" His lips curved under hers.

"Of course not…I loathe you, you know that." A playful punch to his gut had him laughing and kissing her again. "Of course I do, Sarah," his lips caressed her cheek before he pulled back and looked into her eyes, "more than you know." Again neither of them heard Morrigan's shouting at what complete and utter idiots they both were. Nor did they hear her cursing Medb's clause that they HAD to say "I love you" specifically. What they did hear was Hoggle.

"Might one of you help me please…?" Sarah started and ran to her friend.

"Oh, I'm sorry Hoggle!" Jareth took his time walking over, looking rather upset again.

"So Hogwart, how did you come to be part of their plans to hurt Sarah?" She spun on Jareth, pinning him with a gaze that should have warned him to shut up, but she should have known that it wouldn't matter.

"I didn't want to hurt Sarah, I tried to warn her off, keep her away!" Jareth smiled down at Hoggle in a way Sarah imagined he must have smiled down at him when he forced Hoggle to give her that peach.

"Don't be an ass Jareth, he DID try to warn me off." She untied Hoggle and helped him right himself. Other than a few scratches and bruises, he looked ok. "And he would have succeeded too if I hadn't been so stupid." Jareth looked the dwarf over carefully, then lost the haughty grin.

"Very well then, get yourself to the healer." That was as much of an apology as Hoggle would ever get, Sarah only hoped the he understood that. Hoggle proceeded to apologize profusely for his part in the whole charade. He didn't seem to care that both Sarah and Jareth had forgiven him.

"Hoggle, go to the healer before I send you there myself you silly thing." Hoggle blanched then blushed and with another apology, shuffled off down the hall. Now that everything was calming down, Sarah's heart clenched as she turned to Jareth, fear coiling in her belly.

"She will know that I have powers now…"

**Blinding** pain and fury shot through her as she lanced Virden through the heart with her magic. He had failed her tonight in the worst way possible and he was going to die very slowly and very painfully for it, damned be it that she lost another follower. She didn't want them anymore, she could only trust herself and she knew that now. It may be too late, but at least she learned it!

"HOW could you have failed me!?" Medb raged at the man nailed up on her wall by magic. Pacing in front of him, with eyes that COULD kill with a glance, she was determined to find exactly what the hell had gone so very wrong before she disposed of him.

"She stopped me" he sputtered out through the unimaginable pain. If she wasn't the one killing him, she would have to commend him for how long he had been putting up with the torture, but since she WAS the one who wanted him dead, she was merely pleased that he hadn't died before he could tell her anything.

"Stopped you? STOPPED you!?" Her hand reached up and slapped his face hard enough to bruise. The blue black imprint of her hand was instantly apparent on his already blood stained face. "Enlighten me as to how that mere girl could have possibly stopped YOU!?" Eyes flashed defiant as a weak smile spread over his lips.

"With-her-magic" he managed before his body lost the fight with life and death claimed him. Medb was dumbstruck and let his lifeless body fall to the floor in a heap of magically shattered bones.

"So…the little crossbreed has powers does she?" She would have to have a meeting with Kindraa for not telling her that rather important piece of information, though it did make more sense as to why she was told to sacrifice the girl. When Medb killed her, the whelp's powers would transfer to her…that is how she would have the ultimate link to be able to take over the Aboveground.

For the first time since she had come home, she looked around, noticing that Cyric was not there.

"Where the hell is that useless lump!?"

**(A/N: Hope you all enjoyed the chapter, especially now that things are starting to heat up! Sarah is getting into her role as future Queen, Medb is finding that she needs to be a little more careful with the "crossbreed" as she calls Sarah, Jeaule is finding out that she DOES have a damn backbone, Erina is slipping into the darkness of her own desires and Cyric is battling through his drugged psyche! All kinds of fun is happening now!**

** I have written a short one shot of Jeaule's diary entry that made her smile and grow some backbone for those of you who might have been curious as to what she wrote. It will be posted up today as well, so check it out and review:) And yes, thanks Kerichi for being so brilliant with your Remus journal that I had to steal the idea a little. :) LOL   
**

**Speaking of fun! I would like to thank all of you who review my story and make my day every time you do! BattleofEvermore (It is SO good to have you back reading), Brea (my wonderful reviewer, yours always make me smile), darklady26 (my soul sister! You are always inspiration to me), Kerichi (I don't think there is one person who has influenced me in writing as much as you, dear…I love you!), notwritten, phedre87 (always a pleasure hearing what you think of the story!) and saz89 (one of my most vehement reviewers, yours mean so much to me, BIG ego boosters LOL))**


	17. Betrayals

**Disclaimer: I own none of this save for the things that you would bury with me, because you know they're mine! The rest would be buried with their respective owners. I make no money from this, there is only the lovely jingle of reviews lining my pockets.**

**Sarah** clung desperately to Jareth, the bravery she had displayed for Medb was all but drained when she realized the woman would know about her powers now. What was she going to do? Or she could think of the question that was really making her woozy at the moment…what would Medb do? She turned her eyes to Jareth's, his seemed just as worried, there would be no comforting or soothing words from him.

"Sarah, I think we need to talk to the Gods." She shook her head vehemently, as idle fingers smoothed the material of his jacket. She had bunched it up nicely and they couldn't go back in to dinner with wrinkles in their clothing.

"No Jareth, you told me yourself that I wasn't supposed to know about this whole thing. Now that I do…I don't think that they would be too pleased about it." She reached her hand out and smiled when he took it in his. "No, we are just going to have to figure this one out on our own." Sarah shivered at his wicked little lopsided grin, it was almost disturbing that she was starting to think of that grin as sexy instead of the frightening it had been.

"If we put our heads together, something is sure to come to mind." It was like that clichéd light bulb had flickered to life in her head.

"How did you know to come to me?" Jareth turned to her, interest sparking in his eyes.

"Jeaule warned me." Jeaule? Sarah's mind raced, how had she known? She asked Jareth as much. "I don't know…she simply stated that you were in trouble."

"We will have to figure out how she knew." Sarah let her mind wander, trying to come up with something that could link up logically in her mind. "Was there anyone there that could have known?"

"What about Cyric? He could have known what was going on, though it would be strange for him to rat out Medb."

"Where was Cyric when I left?" She asked, her mind racing and her voice nearly a whisper. Faint wrinkles formed in the middle of Jareth's brow as his smirk turned into a frown.

"I think he left, claiming a stomach ache." His grip on her hand tightened and he stopped them in front of the door to the dining hall. "But if I find out that he had anything to do with this…" Jareth's voice fell and that dark look came over him again, "I will kill him." Sarah lifted a hand to his cheek, worry etching on her face.

"Jareth…?" His eyes found hers, but it was almost like there were two beings looking at her. Finally, she understood what the Darkness really was and as her body shivered again in fear, she realized that she didn't like it one bit. "This is the Darkness talking Jareth…don't let it take you from me…not when you are finally mine."

"There isn't a lot I can do to fight it at the moment." Don't ask her why she thought to do it, but she glared at him and found herself stabbing a finger into his chest.

"Don't make me slap you silly, Jareth…magical or otherwise." Shock registered in his eyes, good…at least it wasn't that skin prickling look he had when the Darkness was taking hold.

"Pardon?" He seemed unable to make any further comment.

"I will not let you cop out that easily! What a pathetic excuse…" she lowered her voice to do a pretty pathetic excuse of an imitation on him, "There isn't a lot I can do…." The fire returned to her voice, though she still had no clue where it was coming from, but she could see his body tensing and relaxing…there was something going on in that mind of his. "You must not be the King I thought you if you can give into it that easily, Jareth." Something snapped back into his eyes, something recognizable…something, she recognized with a smile, as annoyance.

"Okay, okay…I think that is quite enough" he sighed as he took hold of her hand again.

"I dunno…I'm on a roll here." She wrapped her arms up around Jareth's neck as his slid around her waist. "I know I have a few more jibes to throw at you." His forehead rested against hers, his eyes closed.

"I'm sure you do, love…but you can save them for later." He sounded so tired, she just wanted to take him to their room and force him to go to sleep, but she knew they had to go back to the dinner.

"Does that mean you grew some balls and told the Darkness to shove off?" His laughter was quick and unexpected, but it pleased her more than any other sound would have at the moment.

"Yes I assume it does." Her hands cupped his face and pulled him into a quick kiss.

"Good…because I didn't want to actually try to hurt you" she quipped, her lips tilted.

"Like you could have." She pinched and twisted the skin of his arm playfully.

"I could have…" but the comeback was weak and his smirk was derisive so she shrugged it off with an air of haughtiness. "Not my fault that you have a couple hundred years of practice on me."

"Yes and much more practice at what is about to happen as well," he said, eyes motioning to the dining hall doors.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean we both left and now we are both coming back at the same time." Confusion tried to take root, but realization thought it would be more funny to let her in on the joke. Her skin went warm as she knew what they were about to face.

"Oh Jareth, they will all think that we just…ugh." She covered her reddened face with her hands, as if that would block out the embarrassment. When Jareth pulled them away, she knew that she was simply going to have to face the music.

"Who cares what they think?" Sarah wanted to scream 'I do!' but the bastard didn't give her a chance. "You are going to be my Queen soon…let their minds run rampant thinking we had a romantic tryst." His smile was so devious and addicting, she soon found herself smiling.

When they entered the dining hall, all eyes turned to them, but Sarah didn't falter…thank the Gods. They were making their way to their seats when Sarah diverted them to Jeaule. She and Maesia seemed to be in deep conversation about something, neither looking very pleased about the topic.

"I think you know what I need to ask you." It wasn't exactly the best ice breaker for a conversation, but for Sarah's current mood, it worked perfectly. Jeaule looked like a deer caught in the headlights, and Sarah instantly felt sorry for being so brusque. "I know you had nothing to do with this Jeaule, don't worry about that." The girl instantly calmed, shoulders falling and breath sighing in relief.

"I would never want something bad to happen to you." Seeing those doe eyes frown in annoyance was almost amusing, it didn't seem natural on her face…and it was obvious that it wasn't an expression that Jeaule was used to. The poor thing didn't seem to know how to deal with the emotion. "I should have said something earlier when Cyric gave Erina that parchment."

Sarah's back straightened at the mention of Cyric, so he was trying to warn someone of what was going to happen…or was he just an informant? If that was the case…then that would have to mean that Erina was his contact here and that unsettled Sarah even further.

"Do you know, Jeaule, if the parchment was a warning?" The girl bit her lip and sighed.

"I believe it was, yes." She was hiding something, or trying not to hide something, this strange new Jeaule sitting before her seemed lost in her own unusual emotions. Jareth stepped forward, getting bored with the situation and wanting the answers probably more than Sarah.

"How do you know Jeaule?" Again, she bit her lip and frowned. "I can't have you hiding things from me. I have to know if Cyric was involved in what just happened to Sarah."

"He wasn't!" The answer was quick and almost desperate.

"However vehement the answer Jeaule," Maesia interrupted, "we DO need to know why you think this." Sarah was about to push on, but Maesia raised a hand and gestured to the guests, who were becoming increasingly interested in the conversation. "Though, I don't think that now is the best time to discuss this. We know that Jeaule had nothing to do with it…so we can always question her later." Sarah hoped that she would master Maesia's smooth manners, for that situation could very well have gotten out of hand without her calm guidance.

"Very well then, Jeaule…I will have to ask you this later." With a gentle smile for the girl, she gripped her hand. "I truly hope that you trust me enough to answer me later." Jeaule nodded sharply and gripped Sarah's hand.

"I want to help you, I do." Her other hand went to her heart, ah…so that's where the battle lay? "I just have to find the courage to do so." Sarah was intrigued at the changes in the girl and wondered what had happened to bring them about. Questions for another time, for now, she had a friend in the healers that she wanted to make sure got the attention he had earned.

"Maesia, I have a friend who risked a lot for me tonight down in the healers office and I need to make sure that he is number one priority right now. Do you know who the healers apprentice is?" Maesia chuckled merrily at that and rested her hand on Jeaule's knee.

"My darling girl here apprentices with Healer Gorbe as one of her many attempts at dodging the men I try throwing at her." Jeaule groaned and blushed at this, attempting to hide her face.

"Could you help me with this Jeaule?" With a deep sigh that Sarah knew wasn't because of being asked to do something, Jeaule nodded.

"Of course, Lady Sarah." Sarah clucked her tongue and shook her head.

"Now, now Jeaule…what did I tell you about that. Understanding crossed that porcelain face and an easy laughter flowed.

"We are in public Lady, here I must give your honorific. Though, in private, I am always honored to be able to call you Sarah." It truly was amazing, the transformation Jeaule seemed to be in the middle of. It gave Sarah hope that if this timid little waif of a girl could change into the blossoming confident girl before her, there might be hope that she could pull off the whole Queen thing.

"Oh very well," she said with a smile. "Could you go to the healer and tell him that my friend Hoggle is his number one priority right now? I know there might be other's in there seeking something to settle their stomachs after this giant meal they served, but I must know that Hoggle is seen to right away." Jeaule's eyes narrowed in confusion.

"But Lady, what about the others tha…oh…me" she stammered as she grimaced a bit in embarrassment. "That would explain why you wanted the apprentice." Jeaule rolled her eyes at herself and Sarah knew that she was silently berating herself.

"You will do well, Jeaule. You are always able to put me at ease." That seemed to brighten the girl up and it pleased Sarah that she hadn't needed to lie to put that smile there. It was completely true that Jeaule had a calm about her that always seemed to infect those around her. "We will meet you there once things wrap up here, ok?"

"Yes, Lady Sarah," Jeaule said with a bow before turning gracefully and leaving the dining hall. With her friend soon to be in good hands and the knowledge that she would learn more about what happened to her tonight soon, Sarah gripped Jareth's hand again and they regained their seats. When her eyes glance over the faces at the table, she is amused to see expressions ranging from chuckling amusement to pouting jealousy. She felt her hand lifted and looked over to her love as his lips graced the back of it. His lips quirked as he leaned over to her and kissed her neck, then whispered in her ear.

"Get used to the attention. Most everyone will want to be you now…and the rest will want to be me."

**Jeaule** muttered to herself as she walked down the halls towards the healers quarters. Why did Maesia, the woman praised for knowing when to and when not to talk, seem to not have that filter when it came to her? It was mortifying that she'd had her self inflicted pariah status declared in front of Lady Sarah. RIGHT when she was trying to break that mold, she was frozen right back into it with careless words.

She knew that Maesia hadn't meant it in a bad way, merely a motherly jibe at the fact that Jeaule did in fact jump any and all hurdles put in her way to avoid seeing the men that Maesia was trying to thrust upon her. How could she possibly tell the only woman that seemed like her mother…that she was already in hopeless and fruitless love? She could parade the whole of the Undergrounds nobility before her for her choosing and yet, if Cyric wasn't among them, she wouldn't care.

Thoughts of him had her mind, inevitably, wandering back to what that note could have been exactly. Why hadn't Erina told someone right away what was in it? Jeaule knew for sure that Erina had known what was going to happen to Lady Sarah and it made her sick. She had wanted to tell her so badly that her sister had withheld the information because of her strange personal vendetta against her, but she hadn't been able to. Jeaule vowed when she saw Sarah next that, sister or not, she would tell her what Erina had done.

Speaking of Erina…where had she gone? She had left in a huff a few moments after Jareth had run from the dining hall. With a resigned sigh, Jeaule decided that she was probably up in her room, smashing things. Jeaule really didn't want to think about her sister at the moment so she pushed her to the back of her mind as she entered the healer's quarters.

When she entered and saw the little dwarf beaten and bloodied, she ran to him. He seemed more startled by her than she was startled by his appearance. He kept pulling out of her grasp.

"Stop that will you? I need to see if you are ok!" His gnarled little fact twisted in impudence.

"You don' need to be dirtying up your clothin' fer the likes o' me." No matter how proud he tried to be, she could hear the dejection in his voice. Did this poor little guy have an unwilling part in what had just happened to Lady Sarah? Her guess was yes…and it was killing him.

She needed to take his mind off of it until the healer came out of the back room. After a quick glance over of him, she noticed that he was a collector of jewelry and pretty much any other shiny object, but there was one in particular that she knew must mean the most to him. There was a bracelet on his wrist and, though it was cheap plastic costume jewelry, it shone greater than any of the others.

"Who gave that to you?" She asked, pointing at the glimmering plastic bracelet. His eyes glossed as he looked down at it, oh please don't let this creature cry, she thought…she wouldn't know how to handle a crying dwarf.

"Sarah…" he stated at length. Oh, she thought, that explains it. They used the poor thing as bait to trap Lady Sarah…how horrible.

"I'm sure she cares for you a great deal." His great head, that seemed to large for his body shook slowly.

"I don' see how she could now. Not after what happened." Jeaule reached her hand under his chin and lifted his eyes to hers.

"I know that she cares." His eyes defied her weakly, too sad to believe her words. "You're Hoggle right?" His body straightened a bit at his name before he nodded. "She sent me here to make sure that you were number one priority with the healer. She said you risked a lot for her tonight." Hoggle still looked sad as he nodded, but he didn't have that look of self loathing that had enveloped his being before.

"Who do we have here?" Healer Gorbe's voice sounded from a patient room before he closed the door behind him. Jeaule straightened and told him that this brave dwarf was number one priority now. "Under whose authority?"

"The Lady Sarah." Healer Grobe asked no more questions, merely hands her a parchment.

"Very well," he said with a grin, "you take this case and I will see to him." Jeaule stared at the parchment in front of her, dread curling in her gut. She hadn't planned on anyone being here. "You will do fine, Jeaule. I wouldn't let you take it if I didn't think you could handle it. All the tests have been taken, you merely need to check vitals and take down some more notes on his symptoms while I wait for the results." Taking a deep breath, she nodded as Healer Gorbe walked Hoggle into an adjoining room.

She scanned the parchment as she opened the door the healer had just left. It appeared that the poor devil had been drugged with a love potion. He probably wasn't feeling too well. Woozy and disoriented most likely, especially if he really didn't like the girl. She smirked and chuckled a little as she laid down the parchment…she really didn't want to think of what he would feel like when the stuff wore off later.

"What's so funny?" A darkly melodic voice asked…and her gut clenched again as she realized that she recognized it. She looked up…into those snow blue eyes that had haunted her since she'd first seen them. The face around them smiled. "It's you…."

"A love potion!?" Jeaule grimaced as she finished…of all the stupid things she could have said to make a first impression…that was it? His laughter was like a soothing caress.

"Well, that is far more interesting than hello," he smirked as he leaned back on the healer's table. It was then, of course, that she realized he had no shirt on. Heat rushed to her face and she knew she attempted to ask why. This was not the way this was supposed to go, but by the gods, how much could she take on their first meeting?! It was almost unfair to throw all this at her like this. "The healer told me to," he stated smoothly, not seeming to be put off by her actions, merely a bit amused. "You can harangue him for not warning you." Beside herself, she smiled.

"It was a bit of a shock." Her voice seems foreign, even to her. Cyric nodded, brown locks of hair coming to hang in front of his eyes.

"I was a bit shocked to see you instead of the healer. It's not everyday that I am shocked by a beautiful girl. I wanted to dive for my clothes and cover myself up." Jeaule listened to his heart as he spoke and there was something about his words that seemed like he was making fun of her in a playful way. Her head tilted as her eyes narrowed and her lips pursed.

"Really…?" He smiled brilliantly again, obviously pleased to have been caught.

"No. I had a thought," his eyes caught hers with a strange gleam that she didn't know how to place, "but it didn't involve putting clothing ON." Her face flushed again and she lowered her eyes, abashed that he could have possibly thought something like that.

"Oh…" Strangely, he seemed pleased by her reaction and just smiled and watched her intently as she went through the tests. "So," she asked, needing to write down more symptoms for Healer Gorbe, "what exactly did you feel that made you think there was something wrong with you?"

"I was think about…" he paused, looking at her with a strange concentration, "something…when I realized that I couldn't be in love with her, I wasn't in love with her. After that, I felt woozy at times, a bit nauseous when she would be away. Complete loss of brain function when she was around." Cyric leaned back again, brushing is seemingly ever unruly hair from his face. "It took every ounce of my will power to write that note and not take anymore of that drugged tea." Jeaule stopped writing and her eyes jolted up.

"Note?" He nodded, then looked worried.

"Sarah is ok right…? That hostess warned her didn't she?" Jeaule shook her head and Cyric all but jumped off the table. "Someone needs to check on Sarah." Jeaule pushed her hands to his chest and forced him to sit back down…and forced herself to ignore the desire that merely touching him had roused.

"It's ok, Cyric! It's ok…she's ok!" He didn't believe her, but that was to be expected, there was no way for him to know that the attempt had already been made. She told him that it had and his body relaxed.

"But how were they warned if not by the hostess I handed the note to?"

"I warned Jareth when a guard asked Lady Sarah to meet a friend of hers in the foyer." His brow furrowed.

"How did you know?" And this was the part that always made her sick.

"The hostess you gave the note to is my sister. She doesn't like Lady Sarah and she laughed when she got up to leave. I asked her why and she said that all her problems would soon be taken care of." He seemed abashed at Erina's behavior and she didn't blame him one bit.

"Gods…your sister and Medb should get together…I think they are perfect for one another." That made her wince, it hurt to hear, even if it was true. "I'm sorry," he offered kindly, his hand reaching out to touch her shoulder. "It's good that you aren't the bitch your sister is." His raw honesty and the smile with which he'd said that made her laugh.

"And Lady Sarah is lucky that you aren't the cold hearted sociopath that Medb is." His smile was quick and relaxing, a strange combination from a face that seemed so ruggedly dangerous.

"Yeah, I don't feel like being Medb's lapdog anymore, it's degrading and I probably never wanted to be with her in the first place. With all this love potion crap…who knows what real love is anymore?" He seemed so upset and her hand, without a thought from her mind, lifted to touch his face. Startled eyes met hers and there was a hopeful look in them that had her leaning towards him.

"Well lad!" The healer shouted as he walked in, causing her to jerk back from him. "It seems that you got lucky today. I have a counter for that love potion of yours and immunize you from new attempts, but this is only temporary." Cyric's eyes were still on hers, so intense that they seemed to see right into her heart. "You will have to find the original elixir for me though, because each love potion is a little different. I will need the original to completely counter the effects."

"Yeah…ok" Cyric answered, as she shifted her eyes, breaking the blood stirring connection they'd shared.

**Cyric** thanked the healer for his help as they were blessed with more company. Jareth and Sarah entered the room, Jareth looking ready to kill, Sarah with an air of indecision.

"Where were you when my fiancé was attacked." Jareth jumped right in, without thought, accusing him of being a part of Medb's plot to hurt Sarah. As Cyric opened his mouth to defend himself, he was shocked to hear a voice to his left.

"Cyric did nothing! He tried to warn you both, just like I TOLD you!" Hearing Jeaule YELLING at the Goblin King on his behalf made him smile…he was sure it was a little bit of a goofy smile too and was glad she didn't see it. But Sarah had and smirked knowingly at him. He grinned right back at her and shrugged as if to say, "how could I not adore her…?" Jareth, seemed completely in shock and cowed at the force of Jeaule's retort.

"Well, then tell me why the hell we weren't warned if he tried so valiantly to warn us." Cyric stood from the table and watched Jeaule's face fall. He felt his heart clench as he watched the battle rage in her mind. The poor thing, how was she supposed to tell on her sister? He felt her heavy sigh like a hammer in his heart.

"It was Erina." Her voice caught as she said it and he wanted to wrap himself around her to make the pain go away. What the hell was this girl going to do to him? He wasn't known as a loving person…he was known as an almost frightening person and here he was wanting to take care of this girl, to do anything so she didn't have to feel the pain her sister was causing her.

"Erina…?" Sarah's disbelief was total as she sat down, unable to stand any longer. "Why?" His eyes went back to Jeaule and he put an arm around her, hopefully it reassured her.

"She hates you Sarah…" Sarah's face fell further into disbelief as her hand came to cover her mouth. Cyric could feel Jeaule's shoulder's beginning to shake, but not with sadness he realized…she was frightened. Of her sister or of what would happen to her sister, he wasn't sure, but guessed that it was probably a little bit of both. "She has always wanted you, sire" she said to Jareth, who looked equally astonished. "She has been in a rage ever since you announced your engagement."

Jareth and Sarah sat there in shared shock as Cyric tried to decide what to do with the girl in his arms. What was it about her that drew him so? He'd always thought he would end up with a woman like Medb…someone powerful, strong and a little dominating. Yet here he was with his arm around a shivering young Fae that he almost knew for sure was none of those things. Jeaule was someone that he would have to protect.

Is that what drew him?

Did he find it intriguing that there was finally someone that needed him more than WANTED him? It was true that Jeaule would probably never throw herself at him in the way that he so loathed of females. She was shy and quiet in the most captivating way. Somehow she was able to be all the things that he thought would always bother him…and she was still interesting.

"What are we going to do?" It was her voice, like a soft ringing of chimes in a gentle breeze, that drew him from his thoughts. Jareth sat with his arm around Sarah, giving comfort where words wouldn't help. It seems, Cyric thought with an inner grin, that the right woman could change a man inside and out.

"Right now, we have to find Erina." Jareth's voice was level, though Cyric could see the storm raging behind his eyes. "Cyric," the king's voice was sharp, but not accusatory anymore, as he addressed him, "I assume that we can count on you now?"

"More than I could explain to you right now, Your Majesty." He told them how Medb had drugged him with the love potion, earning a few more shocked gasps from Lady Sarah. "I will do anything to help you if it means betraying her. She will learn not to mess with the nobility of Dendum." Cyric extended the hand that wasn't around Jeaule. "If Medb want's Sarah so badly, then I swear on my life sire that I will do everything within my power to keep that from happening." Jareth's smile was almost feral as he grabbed Cyric's hand in a fierce shake.

"You just signed your life away son." Cyric smiled and turned to the woman in his arms. She seemed to be composing herself…as if her emotions were taking too long to catch up to one another. Now she seemed eager to help, her eyes clear and focused.

"Jeaule, where would your sister be right now?" She blushed, as she always did when he spoke to her, a trait that he found surprisingly endearing. As soon as her cheeks had reddened, they were almost right back to normal and she frowned at her thought.

"Oh Gods…we should probably check my room first." He watched in apt wonder as tiny fists balled and relaxed reflexively in anger. "Erina would never willingly destroy her own belongings if mine are available." Cyric was liking her sister less and less the more he heard about her. He took Jeaule's hand in his as she led them all to her tower room, but the Spartan room was untouched and pristine…and Jeaule was frowning.

"Her room?" Jeaule shrugged noncommittally, it appeared she no longer really cared if they found her sister. She groaned as a crystal appeared in her hand. He was shocked at how opaque the crystal was…this was a girl who wasn't used to using her powers.

"She's in the gardens, tearing up the flower beds." Those big doe eyes turned to Jareth and Sarah. "I'm so sorry…do you want me to go stop her?" Sarah reached out to her, stopping her, since she was already on her way out the door. He hadn't let go of her hand, he realized, she wouldn't have gone far regardless. With a reassuring squeeze of her hand Cyric pulled her back to him.

"Let her rage, Jeaule." Her hand was at his lips before he realized he had lifted it. "It's not your job to calm her."

"Very true, but she is also the closest to her sister." The king's voice broke their stare. "Jeaule, I have to ask you to act a spy for us. I need to make sure that your sister is never around Sarah by herself." Jeaule didn't look energized about the idea, but she agreed. "And you…" Jareth said, his attention on Cyric again, "you will be our link to Medb for now. Keep in touch with Jeaule and let her know what's going on. Congratulations you two…you are now in the service of the Goblin Kingdom." Cyric smiled down at Jeaule who was, thankfully, smiling right back up at him.

It was that smile that was still in his mind when he walked into Medb's rooms later that evening. He was fully prepared to take the brunt of her anger, but was stunned when he entered the darkness of her chambers. From somewhere in the inky blackness, he heard her voice and, as he had figured, it was at it's chilly worst. She was mad…but he feared that was quite an understatement.

"Where the hell have you been?" He steeled his back, no one spoke to him like that, Queen of the Faeries or not.

"I went to the healer remember?" He flinched as he realized he was still supposed to me under her love potion. Never had he spoken to her like that while under it's sway. Luckily, she took it as hurt neglect instead of anger and he silently thanked the gods for that.

"Oh dear Cyric, I am so sorry. I forgot!" Arms wrapped around his neck and made his skin crawl. How had he not seen this woman for what she was before? Easy, he thought stupidly, you were drugged. That's when he remembered what the doctor told him. Cyric needed to find out where she hid that damn potion. For appearances sake, he slid his arms around her, shocked that his first thought was that she wasn't as lithe as Jeaule.

Geez, he thought with an inner smile, traded a love potion for something even more heady and blinding.

"It's ok," his words were short, he had to figure out a way to keep her from wanting more of him than he was willing to give anymore. "I think I just need to rest and I should feel better." He felt her shift in his arms and used his magic to call light up into the room.

When the fragile beams hit her face, he saw that she was glancing over at her boudoir before her head snapped back to face him. So that must be it. He had seen her slam that shut when he'd walked into the room too many times for him to count. It had to be where the potions were stored.

Now his only problem was how the hell he was going to get into her locked boudoir and WHEN would he get time to do so…?

**(A/N: Short chapter…I know and I am sorry, but any further and it would have led into things that would have made this like a 20 page chapter so…yeah. I do like that Cyric and Jeaule have met now though, that pleased me beyond words. I also think that poor Jeaule can't seem to catch a break. She seems to end up getting everything thrown at her at once, making it very difficult for the poor thing to register it all. **

**If you want to hear her thoughts on her first meeting with Cyric…I have decided to add another entry to 'The Diary of Jeaule Olincamp'. So you will be able to read that if you so wish. ******

**Reviewers who made my wishes come true with their wonderful reviews on the last chapter were: ****BattleofEvermore****Brea**** (your reviews always make me laugh! Oh my goldfish! Oh, I'm writing that down, it HAS to be said somewhere in this story in honor of you!), ****darklady26****dragoneyes171986****Kerichi**** (Slytherin-esque dudes and Hufflepuff-ish gals FTW!!!), ****saz89**** (As always, love your reviews. I love hearing exactly what my reviewers love about the story. Thank you and much 3 as always!), ****The Banshee's Tears**


	18. Little Secrets

**Disclaimer: I do not in any way, shape or form own the original rights to the characters you recognize from the movie/book, nor do I make any type of profit from the writing of this story. I do however own the rights to the storyline presented here and the majority of the characters (Medb, Maesia, Jeaule, Cyric, Erina, etc…). **

**Though, if anyone who reads this wishes to use any of my characters for any reason, I would adore that as well, just ask me first pretty please so I know where to look to read it! Enough rambling for now, I hope you enjoy the twisting way my mind works.**

**Certain** that calm was finally settling over her frayed nerves, Medb walked out on her balcony to get a breath of the fresh air she had denied herself for the past few hours by seeking Kindraa's advice. It was the last place she had wanted to go, that dank and sulfurous cave that Kindraa called home, but she'd had no choice. The original plan that the ancient demon spirit had laid out for her was falling apart before her very eyes…what else was she to do?

Kindraa had not been pleased to see her either, smoke curling from the corners of her human form's fiery red eyes. Medb coughed out the last bits of that heavy, sulfur laced air as she took herself back to that moment, trying to put to memory all that she had learned from the demon that few were brave enough to stand before.

_She hated going to that damn cavern. It took so long to hike through the tunnels that repelled those who sought to teleport into their depths. But she desperately needed to talk to the one who had helped build her plans. She needed to know why things had been kept from her and the only way to do that was to go to the one place that most Fae avoided like the plague. _

_When she emerged into the dark cavern, the only way she knew it was the sound of her echoing footsteps. All was pitch dark save for the few veins of red molten rock along the wall in the back. She knew that once she called upon Kindraa, the cavern would erupt in fire and light, but it never stopped her from jumping when it did._

"_What do you want of me this time, Medb?" The demon had asked, morphing from the shadows into her human form, which was the only form anyone was allowed to see her in. When Medb had first asked her why, the demon had told her that everyone must have their little secrets, but she was sure that Kindraa's real form would frighten the skin off of anyone who looked upon her. Medb didn't much care about that when the demon spoke and her frighteningly sensuous voice echoed from the walls of her cavern, giving her an unearthly quality that the human form sometimes disguised. "I think I have done you enough favors for this century," the demon all but purred as she crossed to Medb._

"_Everything is falling apart, Kindraa and it's because you left out important information that ruined all of my great plans." Fire leapt up from the molten pits behind Kindraa, linked, as Medb well knew, to the demon's emotions. The air would get heavier and the hotter as the demon grew more agitated and she would also change, parts of her setting on fire or smoking. It was off putting, but something that you had to expect when dealing with Kindraa._

"_There are things that bind even me Medb." Medb could see the fire licking from the ends of Kindraa's pin straight russet hair. With a wave of her abnormally long fingers, tipped with what looked like viciously sharp fingernails, a chair appeared near the demon. "What part of this grand play did you discover my dear fool?" The fire now teased at the edges of her sardonically raised brows, she was getting angry._

"_The bastard queen to be has powers!" Medb couldn't control her anger the way the demon before her could. It seemed the fiery being had the ability to wrap her anger up and weave it into dangerous and sexual seemingly careless movements of her body. Though, anyone who could keep their wits about them when in her presence would be able to tell when the beast was getting angry._

"_You weren't supposed to know that." The words were like honey, but Medb felt the fury behind them. She didn't need to ask why, it was most likely etched all over her face, for the demon explained. "You weren't supposed to know about her powers, just as she wasn't supposed to know about you or the pact that you made with the gods, but…" the demon trailed off, her fiery follicles calming to smoking trails that seemed to mock Medb, the demon was enjoying itself. "…Now that you both know of each other, it will be much more difficult. It's all because of YOU," Kindraa spun on Medb, yet to sit in her chair, the demon paced before it. "Because of your strange NEED to be at that ball, when you should have stayed in your kingdom like I told you, she learned of you and grew curious." _

_For once in her life, Medb stayed wisely silent, wanting to learn all she could from Kindraa, but honestly fearful of the demon's vengeance. It was true that she had gone against what Kindraa had told her and had gone to that ball. And it was painfully true that all of her plans had started falling apart from that one night._

"_She later learned, because of loose lips-"_

"_Whose!?" Medb blurted it out without thought, no one interrupted Kindraa. The flash of the fiery whip was faster and more painful than Medb could even register. It left a mark down her left cheek that she was certain would never fade completely._

"_THAT is no longer your concern!" Kindraa's voice lost some of its dark sexual beauty and Medb caught a glimpse of what was under that ruthlessly controlled form. _

_The voice she had heard was like the deep crackle of a fire, dark and…well…demonic. But it had been Kindraa's face that had sent Medb to her knees in fear. The normally composed and amusedly bored expression had faded and her features had shifted for a moment, giving Medb a glimpse at the raging demon beneath the beautiful human exterior._

"_You have lost the right to get all information from me," Kindraa chided, pulling her control back and reshaping her form. "Now that you both know of each other, Medb, I do not foresee a promising future for you." Medb pulled herself back up and waited a moment, to make sure that the demon was finished. She didn't want to anger her again, the wound on her cheek was still warm with her blood._

"_Do you see me triumphing in any of the paths?" Kindraa's eyes went black as she looked down the paths of time, checking each possibility of the future. When Medb had first asked her this question, Kindraa had seen her certain victory in over half of the strands. That was the only reason that Medb had moved forward with her plans. That and the instructions of the demon…which, she thought with a defeated sigh…she hadn't listened to. She should not have shrugged off the help of such a creature and that was her cross to bear._

"_I see you winning in only one thread, Medb and it is a long shot." Kindraa patted the chair that she was still walking around. Medb realized why she had never sat in it…the demon had known she would need it. The chair had never been for Kindraa. One thing was going well and that was the fact that the demon was once again enjoying herself, smiling in the face of Medb's almost certain defeat._

Kindraa had no loyalties, Medb knew this and perhaps that was the reason she didn't follow her advice completely. The demon gave or didn't give advice as she saw fit, either weaving strands of deceit to ensure a dark path she'd seen or burning other's to a crisp by withholding information that would have made them certain. Kindraa was inherently wicked, but she wasn't completely evil either. Like everything in the Underground, the Gods held at least some sway over her actions, which is why she hadn't revealed Sarah's magic.

Medb knew that the previous night had been an utter disaster, but she also knew that she had been extremely lucky. Jareth would have had every right to kill her right there. Would his little human convert's weakness in not doing that very thing be her undoing? Kindraa had said that the act was the only reason one strand had shown Medb's victory. She would have to come up with something twisted and devious to win now, something that no one would expect.

Medb racked her mind, trying to come up with a good enough plan to pull herself out of the trench she had dug herself. Her eyes caught a glimpse of the newest batch of men, fruitlessly fighting to the death in their pathetic attempts to become the husband she would never take. Some came of their own will, others, she sent for. Which reminded her that she still had to send for a few more contestants.

Wouldn't it be lovely to have a contestant that she could hold over the future queen?

Anything to hold over her would be a win in Medb's books, but it was the finding out of what to hold over her that was the problem. There was no way for her to find out anything about the girl. They certainly wouldn't be hiring any new help now, for fear that they would be a spy, so she was stumped.

"Ahem," a clearing throat behind her stole her attention away from quickly deteriorating plans. It was one of her castle guards, tall and lean though probably not as attractive as some of the others she had hired. Raised brows told him to go on. "You have a guest, Your Majesty."

"I do not wish to see anyone at this time," she sighed and waved her hand airily to dismiss him. "Just get rid of them." When he took a step forward, she narrowed her eyes, but something in his kept her mouth shut.

"I would suggest seeing this person milady." His tone was a bit shaky, but she could tell that he was being sincere. "She could be a great asset." Her heart fluttered, could this guest really help turn things around for her? She eyed Virden's body that was still laying, a lifeless lump, across the room. Cyric hadn't stayed with her the previous night because of his illness and she hadn't seen fit to clean the body up herself.

"Fine then, but clean that body up on your way out." A wicked thought crossed her mind and she reached out for the guard. "Better idea, let in my guest and clean the body up as she is leaving the room." The guard looked confused, but didn't say a word as he left the room to summon her guest.

When she caught the first glimpse of her visitor, her body warmed with the knowledge that this was indeed the kind of help she could use. Wide blue eyes looked upon the body of Virden warily as she made sure to stay as far away from it as possible.

"That is what happens when you disappoint me," Medb said in a low, warning tone. She had to make a strong impression on this girl with the shifting, unsure eyes if she wanted to hold her loyalty. "I trust you aren't planning on disappointing me, are you?" Long black strands of hair swayed as she shook her head.

"No, Your Grace, I do not." Medb let one side of her mouth quirk in a derisive smirk.

"For your sake I would hope not." She crossed to the girl who stood in the middle of her room and circled her, sizing her up. "You have just stepped into quite an interesting predicament. You have betrayed King Jareth, an act for which I could report you and you would surely be killed." Those simmering blue eyes looked frightened, good…that was exactly what she wanted.

"But I can help you, Your Highness." Medb captured her gaze with her icy coolness.

"How…?" The smile that she saw cross over the young Fae's face reminded her a bit too much of her own and had her frowning.

"I am the crossbreed's lady's maid." Eyes widened a fraction at the information then narrowed again.

"What is in this for you?" The girl seemed to be gaining some confidence, for she took a step towards Medb.

"I want Jareth." Laughter so sudden it shocked even her, flowed from Medb in waves.

"But child…that is what I want." Pin straight ebony locks shook.

"I don't think you really want HIM…you want his powers don't you?" Medb wasn't sure if she wanted to keep this girl around, she seemed to be a bit too smart to be someone to trust in.

"How do I know you aren't a spy for that crossbreed bitch?" The girl frowned at this, obviously at a loss of how to prove herself, but Medb knew at that moment that she wasn't a spy. If she were, she would have looked worried, if only for an instant.

"Ask anything of me, Majesty and I will strive to prove myself." Medb narrowed her gaze at the girl, thinking of what she could ask her when it hit her.

"Is there anything I could use as leverage or something I could harm that would hurt the future queen?" The blue eyes frowned as the girl thought about this.

"I think, milady, that you could use Lord Tur as a bargaining chip of some sort." This wasn't what Medb had in mind. She had been there when Jareth had taken the two from the ball. Lord Tur, the man who had been throwing himself on the crossbreed, wasn't the leverage that she wanted and she told the girl as much. "I believe that was all an act, milady."

"Oh…?" If this was true, there could be some merit to what she was saying. "How do you assume that?"

"Glances that they thought no one else saw, something about everything that happened seemed a little too contrived to me." This girl was smart, should she trust her though? There was only one way to find out and this would definitely be something that no one would be expecting. Perhaps this was her way.

"What is your name girl?"

"Erina." Oh, it was the girl that had seated them at the dinner the night before. She had thought she'd seen something in those blue eyes whenever they stole a glance at the guests of honor.

"Well Erina, you have guessed correctly that I merely want Jareth for his powers." Again she resumed circling the girl, wanting to keep her on her toes. From the momentary sparks of fire in her eyes, she knew she wouldn't want this girl getting any ideas to double cross her. "You say you want him then? I assume that can be arranged." Hope glimmered in shining blue eyes, not yet completely ruined by her hatred, but Medb could feel it simmering within her, knew that one day it would take over this girl

"I will do anything you ask." Those were the words she'd wanted to hear.

"If you do well and I get everything that I want…you may have your King, but," the hope died in Erina's eyes slightly as she paused. "I will still be married to him in public, so you may only have him in the cover of night. We look enough alike that you can pass for me in the darkness."

"But-"

"No buts, it is this deal or no deal child." She sat back in her chair, seemingly uninterested, while her insides churned in hope that the girl would take her offer. Medb knew that she needed Erina, but the girl mustn't know that. The girl must think herself irrelevant.

"Fine." The agreement was clipped and brief, but it was an agreement none the less and Medb smiled to herself as she sat to write out her final invitations.

**Sarah** paced the room before her, she hadn't been truly calm since the revelation that Medb would know of her powers had flitted through her mind. Her mind was constantly in a whir over what was going to happen. It was so bad that she hadn't slept the night before and had actually managed to keep Jareth up, which she had found out to be a bad thing. He wasn't the nicest of people when he was running on low sleep.

But surely Medb would try something now? Her mind whirred back into action as the fear bubbled back up into her system. Something to test her burgeoning powers…? Sarah wasn't sure that she would be able to stand up to anything Medb would try throwing at her. Just the thought made her feel sick to her stomach and she needed to sit down.

It was then, when her head was between her knees and her breath was raspy, that Jareth decided to come back from his meeting with the guards. He'd laid out what was allowed and what was not allowed in the kingdom anymore. No new staff was to be hired until further notice, all packages were to be thoroughly inspected with magic before being delivered and guards would be at the door of whatever room Sarah was in. He was locking down and he wasn't dallying about it either.

"What's wrong with you now?" He asked with a grin as he crossed to her and rubbed a hand down her back.

"I can't face Medb." She felt his hand grip her neck and pull her up as a new, unexpected wave of nausea came rushing over her. When she looked into his eyes, her first reaction was shame. His eyes bored into hers with an intensity that she'd only seen when they made love, but it wasn't passion she saw in his eyes.

"Can't…? Or won't?" He sounded so disappointed in her, it made her want to curl into a ball and hide in a dark corner.

"I'm not powerful enough Jareth, I-"

"Shut up." His sudden words stunned her into doing just that. "You ARE powerful Sarah, you just need to believe in yourself." She watched as he stood and paced before her, like an agitated tiger locked away in a cage. "Look how you stood up to her last night!"

"That is so much different that actually fighting her with mag-"

"It's NO different Sarah!" His eyes were fired now as he pulled her to her feet. "Your magic is here," he said, placing his hand over her heart. "Once you learn that, you can do anything you want to Sarah." Her mind switched from worry to frustrated anger in a wave that she didn't even understand.

"Why are you being so short with me today…?!" Oh of course she had to say that and not…yes I understand. Of course she had to provoke him, but she accepted the fact that this was how it would always be with the two of them.

"I am being short with you because we are running out of time for me to baby you." Her eyes narrowed dangerously at his words. There was no reason to speak to her that way.

"I have been working my ASS off to learn all that I have to know! Do you think I would spend hours learning how to use these damn powers if I wanted to be babied!?" Jareth spun around, catching her shoulders roughly with his hands.

"You have been working hard, I won't deny that, but now," he let her go, throwing his hands in the air, exasperated. "Now, when things really get down to the wire, I get this girl who is having panic attacks and is telling me she can't do something that I know damn well that she CAN!" He sighed and visibly calmed himself, giving her a weak smile. "It's hard to stand here, knowing how powerful and capable you are and hear you say that you can't." She knew he was right, just like she knew that she'd needed this verbal kick in the butt to get her out of the funk she had been in since last night.

"I'm just so overwhelmed by all of it." She sat down on the edge of the bed and smiled with relief when she felt the heat of his body next to her. "I don't need to be babied, Jareth, but I do need your help." Resting her head on his shoulder, she conjured up a crystal just to see the shimmering surface. Its delicate blue glow glistened as she turned it, watching the swirls dance over the surface. "I can't do it alone."

"I know, love." He said, kissing the top of her head lightly. "I will be here for you, but you really do need to stop the whining, it's not at all becoming of you." She laughed and smacked his chest.

"Ass." He said nothing, merely draped an arm over her shoulders. "So what are we going to do now?"

"Well, we have to make sure that everyone thinks that everything is perfectly ok." She gave an unladylike snort.

"We have to lie." He nodded and pulled her shoulder to bring her closer to him.

"Another party could do the trick." Sarah groaned at the thought of having another one of those mind numbing dinners. "Not like last night, love. I was thinking of having you throw an Aboveground themed party." She pulled back from him, bewildered.

"What do you mean?" He couldn't possibly mean that he wanted her to throw a dance party in the ballroom or something…could he?

"I mean a party like something you would have thrown when you were human, or a party you would have gone to." Sarah smiled, it was indeed a modern dance party he had in mind for the very prim and proper world of the Underground. That could be interesting.

"I bet no one has ever thrown something like that before!" His unguarded laughter made her feel better, almost alleviating her fears of Medb's reprisal. She shoved them from the forefront of her mind, but they stayed in the back as always.

"Not since the Victorian party of 1866, but that was quite boring, even by our standards." Sarah laughed, but she was cringing inside.

"Nothing can be more boring than those damn dinners." His eyes were bright as he smiled at her.

"You had better get used to it, love. You will be attending those dinners for centuries." Again she groaned before summoning another crystal, this time to call on Jeaule. She needed to enlist her artistic help to make a 'catalog', so to speak, of the appropriate attire for her little party.

Half way through making it, Jeaule turned to her with wide eyes.

"Are you sure that we need to wear clothing like this?" Her amber eyes were staring down in abject horror at the mini skirt and one shoulder shirt combo that Sarah had just put together.

"You don't have to hun." Sarah laughed, handing Jeaule another outfit design. "You can wear this." The hip hugging black leather pants and shiny gold halter were certainly one of the most conservative of combinations she had made and would compliment Jeaule beautifully. She could just see that shiny gold halter making her hair and eyes all but glow.

"Th-that?" Jeaule's eyes weren't glowing, at the moment they were all but bugging from her head. "Can't I just wear a dress?" Sarah nodded and handed her another option, silently deciding as she destroyed the other picture, that she would be wearing the leather pants and shiny halter. Though, she thought, the shirt would have to be a shiny green for her.

"Yes, but it has to be Aboveground style." This dress was gold, because she loved the thought of that color on Jeaule, and halter styled as well. Jeaule had beautiful shoulders, why not show them off? It wrapped around the body to the rib cage and was connected to the waist by a sheer material. From the waist it flowed down in carefree folds to about mid thigh.

"Oh Sarah…" Jeaule sounded unsure of herself.

"You will look great in that!" Jeaule's hand brushed over her mid drift, which would be exposed under the sheer material, doubt clouding her eyes. "I have decided it! You will be wearing that dress for my party!" Horrified amber eyes pleaded with hers. "I promise you, you will like it once it's on and think of what everyone will say."

"That's what I'm afraid of…" Sarah laughed and patted her on the back.

"Everyone is going to be just as horrified as you about this party, you won't be alone." Jeaule smiled weakly as she continued making the cards. When they were on to the men's clothing choices, Sarah realized that the model all the clothes were going on was looking more and more like Cyric as Jeaule created them. It made her smile, which made Jeaule falter.

"What…?" Sarah held up a picture before her, pretending to study it while she was actually studying Jeaule's reactions.

"I was just thinking of Cyric of Dendum, and how much this looks like him." Jeaule flushed a bright red, making Sarah smile wider. "Do you like him?" Jeaule merely looked down at her pad of paper and kept drawing, her latest picture looking nothing like Cyric, which only made Sarah smile all the more. "Oh come on, I would like to assume that you think of me as a friend by now?"

"Of course I do, you are very kind to me." Jeaule had pulled back, but Sarah knew that the statement was true, they were friends now.

"Then tell me, do you like him?" Jeaule sighed and put down her picture.

"I believe so, but I don't like wasting my thoughts on something that is most likely unfounded and foolish." Sarah frowned and picked up the picture of the golden dress again.

"He will drop dead when he sees you in this." Jeaule looked aghast for a moment until she realized that Sarah was exaggerating. She picked up her picture again and resumed drawing, a silly little smile on her face.

"He will think SOMETHING, that's for sure." Sarah burst with laughter, she wasn't quite used to the quirky new Jeaule, but she loved it. Sarah knew that Cyric liked the girl, but didn't think that Jeaule would believe her even if she told her. So she would simply have to set something up at the party now wouldn't she?

**His** brain hurt from trying to think of how to get into that damn boudoir. Medb was gone and he figured he had at least an hour before she returned. It had been two days since that night at the palace and he was running out of excuses not to be around her. If he didn't get that potion soon, the temporary restorative would wear off and she could drug him again.

So it had to be done soon.

The room that lay beyond these heavy wooden doors was where the answer to all his problems was, now all he had to do was figure out how the hell to get inside. Surely it was warded and he knew for a fact that it was locked. He could use a crystal to counter any possible wards, but how would he get past the lock without marring the wood? The only answer had him groaning.

He would have to find a way to get a hold of the damn key. She couldn't know that he'd been inside the room, so he couldn't get in without unlocking the door so wood wouldn't be marred.

"Can you believe the insolence!?" Medb came charging in the room, thankfully too upset over something to notice that he'd been standing in front of her locked boudoir doors.

"What is it?" She was waving something in his face angrily and he wondered if she expected him to be able to read the blurred lines of words.

"It's an invitation!" He frowned, what the hell was her problem?

"To what?"

"To ANOTHER of her parties!" Ok this was getting a little too strange.

"Why would she invite you?" It was out of his mouth before he could check himself and he cringed as she spun on him, fury etched in every fiber of her being.

"She didn't." Now was where he needed to pull back, when that icy tone came on, there was assuredly nothing kind going on in her mind. Who was he kidding? There was never anything kind going on in her mind. "She invited you."

'Oh lord, come up with something, oh Sarah,' he thought, 'why didn't you warn me?' A thought came to his mind while Medb was staring at him, fury and speculation crossing her features.

"Why did she invite you if I and all those of my kingdom are banned from the Goblin Kingdom?" His smile was quick and unforced since he was pleased with the story he'd come up with. He would just have to make sure that it was relayed to Sarah and Jareth.

"Because they found me at the healer after they sent you away and I convinced them that I knew nothing of your plot." Her eyes narrowed further, into slits of icy fire that was unconvinced. "I was trying to keep myself on their good side so I would be able to do these things," he said, snatching the invitation from her hand. "I am of more use to you now than I was before. Now I can be where you can't." That seemed to be the right switch to flip, for she smiled, slow and silky.

"Yes, it will be nice to have more than one spy in the Goblin court." Cyric started at that information, another spy? "You must gather all the information you can and I will match it up with what my second informant tells me. With two sets of ears, it will be all the easier." Shocked coursed through his veins as he made a mental note to get that information to Jeaule as soon as possible so she could tell Jareth and Sarah.

"Who is your informant?" Icy eyes narrowed at the question. "If I knew who it was, I could rendezvous with them at the Goblin Palace." Medb shook her head and laughed.

"No, no dear Cyric. Everyone must have their little secrets."

**(A/N: There it is, chapter 18! Hope you liked it. I am debating on if I want to expand on Jeaule's diary any more. I might. I even had a request for something around the same thing for Cyric…what do you guys think of that? My biggest thing here is making my readers happy, if you guys want to hear a bit more of what dear ole Cyric is thinking, then by all means I will write him a journal too. **

**Those who pleased me with their reviews last week are: ****BattleofEvermore**** (you have prompted me to see if anyone else wishes to see Cyric's POV in a journal. I love the idea, so it just might happen!), ****Brea**** (You have the best sayings ever! LOL I would love to make this a never ending story…was actually thinkin' bout a possible sequel), ****darklady26**** (Yay for long reviews! Email me chicka…miss you!), ****harleyteen****, Katchelle87, ****Kerichi**** (much 3 as always babe), ****notwritten****, saz89**** (Jeaule and Cyric 3 Awww), ****The Banshee's Tears**

**Hope you all enjoyed it! Catch you all next week!)**


	19. Modernistic Merriment

**Disclaimer:**** I do not in anyway own rights to the land and/or copyrighted characters from this movie. I do not in anyway earn money from the writing of this fic and anyone that thinks I do is a very special person! LOL**

**Cluttered** little piles of assorted messes covered the giant oak desk Jareth had given her to store all her party arrangements. Never in Sarah's wildest dreams had she thought that planning a party was an annoying and stomach turning job. And yet, here she sat at a desk covered with overly polite rejections and the positive RSVP's, some sounded almost grudgingly accepting of what was going to happen and others seemed to look forward to it.

She had to admit that there were more attending than she thought the elite of the Underground would.

And that meant that she had to look over EVERY plan she had made in the last week to make sure that they could accommodate everyone that was arriving. Though, the party being tonight, if things were short, she wasn't sure at all what the hell she was going to do about it.

Whatever happened, Sarah wondered as she blew a stray strand of hair from her face, to buying a case of beer and putting on some bitchin' CD's? That kind of simplicity belonged to the Aboveground, she thought bitterly. She just had to thank the gods that it appeared she had been smart enough to order and prepare for even more than had accepted. Finally secure in the knowledge that everything was going to be ok, she rested her head on the desk for a moment of quiet triumph.

And that was how Jareth saw her when he walked into the room.

"You better just be sleeping," he chided with a hint of laughter in his voice. Her head lifted and she gave him a teasing smirk.

"Nope, I couldn't read the calligraphy for Lord Deveron, so I tried getting really close to see if it helped." She had expected a smirk, but Jareth crossed to the bar and poured himself a finger of whiskey.

"Did it help?" he asked as he lifted the shimmering glass to his lips. Sarah huffed and pouted prettily at him.

"You were supposed to laugh." He smiled then and, setting the drink down, crossed the room to her.

"I'm sorry dear," his lips kissed her neck.

"If you really are then seem interested in the party." This time his smile was brilliant as he leaned in to kiss her neck again.

"The chore you ask of me Madame, is not easy."

"Oh you…" she exclaimed, trying to swat him away. He nipped at her ear once more before pulling a chair to her and leaning back with a graceful carelessness. Jareth rested a foot on the opposite knee and laced his fingers behind his head with a smirk.

"Ok, I'm interested, tell me what will be going on." Sarah knew that he wisely omitted saying, 'For the hundredth time' and smiled at him.

"Well, there aren't going to be any stuffy rules at this party, so all the guests should be intriguingly befuddled by that." Her laughter bordered on wicked, even to her own ears, but it was what made this party so exciting for her. It was her own little joke that there would not be the formal dining arrangement that all parties in the Underground adopted. She detested those dinners and since it was her party to plan, she did away with it.

"That should be interesting to watch the dignitaries figure out what to do with only one set of silverware." Her mind wandered a moment, picturing the Lords and Ladies eating, wondering how to go about the different plates set before them.

"And the meal itself should throw them off a bit." Jareth's brow creased in question. "I am serving dinner modern Aboveground style as well. That means a salad, entrée and desert. No courses." Sarah bored Jareth with a few more details of what was going to happen that night, until there was an impatient knock on the door. Jareth bade them enter and she was delighted to see Jeaule and Erina.

Though she was a bit wary of Erina since the dinner party last week, the girl seemed to have gotten over her infatuation according to her sister. Jeaule had been delighted that it seemed her sister was returning to normal, but she was still told to keep a watch on the girl. The blossoming blonde had become a good friend to Sarah over the week and was really starting to come into her new boldness. Though, Sarah thought with an inner chuckle, she was still upset over the choice of outfit Sarah had deemed she would wear.

"Girls, it's lovely to see you." They both curtsied to her and smiled, but she always seemed to believe Jeaule's was more sincere. There was something in Erina's eyes that always made Sarah doubt Jeaule's assessment. "I am delighted to tell you that I do not require your assistance tonight." Jeaule looked upset, Erina almost relieved. Sarah made a note to keep her eye on the girl, there was something still very odd about her. "I want you two to go on and only worry about your own beauty tonight."

"Thank you Lady Sarah," Jeaule offered while Erina was already backing out of the room.

"I can't wait to see you in that dress, Jeaule." Sarah watched Erina's eyes narrow in question and maybe even a little anger that she hadn't known Sarah had picked out Jeaule's dress for the evening. Jeaule was blushing profusely when she got to the door.

"I don't know about the dress, but, of course, I will wear it." Erina then grabbed her sister's arm, an action that was supposed to look gentle, but Sarah wasn't fooled as the two exited.

"I don't know about Erina, Jareth." It seemed, by the look in Jareth's eyes that he wasn't sure about the girl either, but neither of them could do anything but wait. It was horrible for both of them, but they had to accept the fact and move on.

And they did, getting dressed and preparing for the ball.

"You look gorgeous," she heard her love say over her shoulder where she felt his lips press. She felt something next to gorgeous in the black matte leather pants and iridescent emerald green halter top. Her eyes seemed to glow and her hair cascaded around her shoulders. The glittery green eye shadow had been an impulse, but she was glad for it.

She turned her eyes to Jareth who, for all his otherworldliness, seemed just as he always did in the Aboveground clothing.

"Will you always look like a devilishly handsome ethereal being no matter what you wear?" Her eyes took in the smart black dress pants and slate blue t-shirt under the black tailored jacket.

"I sure hope so." Sarah wrapped her arms around his neck and was about to kiss him senseless when she heard Blix clearing his little throat.

"So sorry Your Graces." Sarah let her head fall against Jareth's forehead.

"I'm not Queen yet, Blix." The smile that crossed his ugly face was infectious.

"I might as well start practicing, Lady." She smiled at him, delighted in his answer while Jareth asked him what was needed. "Cyric of Dendum is here sire, he requires a word with both of you." The only reason Blix was even thinking of letting Cyric into their room was the fact that they had told him to allow Jeaule and Cyric whenever they needed a word with them.

When Blix led Cyric in, Sarah had to conceal a sudden giddy laughter. It was beyond her sense of humor that he and Jeaule would match tonight. He was wearing a bold, and shocking to her, gold button up shirt which was further shocked to discover that he could pull off. Normally she would have dressed the man in pale blue, but with his mane of chocolate brown hair, the gold was founded. He'd finished off with pants much like Jareth's in make.

"Jareth," he offered, bowing to Jareth before turning to her. "Lady Sarah. I am sad to say that I have some disturbing news for you." Sarah's flighty thoughts of matchmaking flew from her mind at his tone.

"What is it?" Her mind spun, thinking of a million things that Medb could do to ruin the night and take her revenge upon her.

"I am afraid that Medb has managed to infiltrate a spy into your home." Jareth's rage erupted violently in a crash of the glass of whisky he had begun to pour.

"How the devil did the woman manage that!?" Cyric made a helpless gesture to show he had no further information to offer.

"She wouldn't tell me who it was, merely told me that there was one." All three assumed automatically that it would be a man, since she had a knack for beguiling them so easily.

"Perhaps we weren't as thorough in our invitation lists as we had thought and one of the guests is her spy," Sarah thought aloud. Both men nodded their agreement, Jareth pulling her close.

"You aren't leaving my side tonight." She knew that there wasn't room for argument here so didn't bother, merely nodded and tried to think of what to do next. "Cyric, you keep your eye out for anyone suspicious, get Jeaule to help you as well." The light that lit in those pale blue eyes of his intrigued Sarah enough to bring her matchmaking plans back to thought.

"Cyric, why don't you escort Jeaule tonight, it would be a nice way for you both to keep and eye out and relay information." His eyes smiled at her. "Plus, it would be sad for one or the both of you to have empty arms tonight." He didn't have to thank her, it was apparent in his eyes as he bowed to her.

"I think that is a perfect plan, Lady. I shall attend to her right away." Before he left, he turned once more to Jareth. "I will keep an eye out Your Highness, I promise."

**Fretting** over how much the dress exposed wasn't going to make it any less audacious. Her fingers played over the sheer material that left her mid drift scandalously exposed. It didn't seem to matter in her mind that the dress did make her look amazing, the shimmering material of the top and skirt portions making her appear to be covered in liquid gold.

Her mind replayed the conversation with her sister after they had left the royal chambers.

"_What the hell was she talking about Jeaule?" Erina hadn't been pleased about what Sarah had said and Jeaule wasn't sure how to handle the situation. _

"_She picked out the dress that I shall wear tonight," she offered, deciding to be straight forward about it._

"_Who is she to pick out what you are going to wear?" This change had disturbed Jeaule, who had been thinking that her sister was finally returning to normal. The girl who walked beside her now more resembled what she had been a week ago._

"_She is my friend." That really wasn't what she should have said, she realized this in hindsight, but it was too late to take back what was said._

"_Friend!?" Erina all but spat the word. "How can she be your friend?! You are her maid, Jeaule. Queen's are not friends with their maids!" Jeaule stopped in front of her door and turned on her sister._

"_Sarah isn't going to be just any Queen, Erina! Sarah is going to be something new, something refreshing here and I think it will benefit us all. So suck it up and, for the love of the gods," she shouted, opening her door and stepping inside, "shut up!" She had slammed the door on the very surprised face of her sister._

Now, as she waited for her sister to come to her door so they could walk down to the party together, all she could think about was her dress and what people would think of her in it. Worse yet, her mind wandered, what would Cyric think of it?

Would he think it too daring and be appalled by her wearing something so provocative? Or would he think, as Sarah did, that it made her look like a precious piece of treasure just waiting to be discovered? The knock on her door drew her from these thoughts and she crossed the room to let in her sister. It was the shock of her life to find not her sister on the other side of her door, but the very man she had just been thinking of.

When she opened the door, he had been languidly leaning against the doorframe, a devilish smirk playing over his full lips. But when he had set eyes on her, that playboy pretense seemed to melt away into pure shock. Her heart skipped as she thought for sure her first thought of his reaction was going to come true.

"Lady Sarah made me wear it," she stammered as her arms nervously tried to cover her exposed stomach. Before she was able to cover herself, she felt his hands on her arms. Desire flashed through her as it always seemed to when he touched her and her eyes flew up to his. What she saw there was surprising, there was a desire burning in those snow blue eyes that sent a shiver up her spine and down again.

"I owe the Lady a far bigger thank you than I had originally thought." She felt her brow furrow as she narrowed her eyes at him.

"And just what does that mean?" That delightfully predatory roguish smile returned as he pulled her arms out so he could look at her. When his eyes looked her over, her heart fluttered, never before had she been scrutinized like that.

"It means, dear Jeaule," he started, placing a gentle kiss on her hand, "that something so beautiful should never be hidden away." The blush invaded her cheeks before she could battle it. "You look like the sun tonight Jeaule, surely you will steal the hearts of many."

"I only need one." Her words shocked herself, but she let herself relax as his laughter caressed her like the silken material of her dress. Cyric wrapped her arm in his as he led her out of her room.

She took a moment to look him over and was silently pleased that they matched. It seemed that the rusty gold of the shirt he wore only made his eyes all the more devastatingly blue. Jeaule loved having to look up into his eyes. Even though she was considered tall, she still only came up to his nose. Her arm in his seemed the perfect fit and she allowed herself to smile at the thought of being escorted by him that night.

Why was he escorting her tonight…? was her sudden thought.

"Why exactly did you come to my room?" Her heart clenched as it waited for his answer.

"The Lady Sarah bade me to." Heart plummeted at the answer, he hadn't come of his own accord.

"You don't have to escort me if YOU don't wish to." Her words were harsh and clipped as she started to pull her arm from his. His laughter was like salt on fresh wounds to her heart.

"If I hadn't wanted to come…I wouldn't have." He stated simply as he tightened his grip on the arm she had been pulling away. "I never do what I don't want to." Still bruised and disbelieving, Jeaule took a swing at him that she normally wouldn't have.

"Unless you're drugged." When he laughed again, she wondered why. Shouldn't he have been angry at her for her words?

"Yes, yes…unless that, but I don't think that you or the Lady Sarah would stoop so low as that." Her mind struggled for something mean to say to him, something to make him feel unwanted, but she wasn't sure that she could come up with something since she did want him. Even if she could, she thought with a sigh, he would probably just laugh so more. Her silence must have alerted him to something for he stopped and turned her so they were facing.

"What?" His eyes narrowed as he looked down at her.

"Do you not want me to escort you, Jeaule?" How was she supposed to answer that? If she said yes, then she looked stupid and if she said no, she sounded like a bitch.

"Yes," she said, deciding that she was already used to stupid.

"Then why are you acting so icy and distant?" Stupid ruled as he mouth opened again.

"Because I wonder if you want to escort me." When her voice broke at the end, she wanted to run back to her room and slam the door, not to come out for days. She would have too, if he hadn't had that damnable hold on her arm.

"I thought I had made it clear that I did want to." His finger came up to smooth the area between her brow, understanding clouding his face. "Obviously, I have not." A heart that had thought it was beaten speed back up at the words. "Jeaule," Cyric said, bringing her hand to his lips, "you bewitched me that day in the healer's office. I traded a love potion for you." Her eyes went wide.

"I had expected a 'will you go to the party with me' not this…" Her breath caught as his whole face seemed to smile, delight dancing in his eyes.

"Sorry to disappoint." Her laughter was shaky as his hand lifted to cup her face. "I wonder if my feelings are founded in you?" How could he think otherwise? she wondered as she nodded her head. She felt his other arm wrap around her waist and pull her closer. As his face inched closer to hers, her world felt lighter. When his lips pressed to hers, there didn't seem to be a world at all. There was only him.

They were so lost in each other that neither heard the door click shut behind them.

Smiles seemed permanent on their faces as they entered the ball room, which was redecorated for the party. Though Cyric's was more of a smirk and his arm around her waist was possessive while her smile was accompanied by a pale flush of her cheeks.

Both of their eyes went wide at the sight before them. The room was dark and lights flashed all around them. A strange, fast paced music pounded out its beat, Jeaule could swear that she could feel the vibrations of it in her very breast. It was a shock, to be sure, but it delighted her. This was something so different that she wasn't entirely sure how to handle it.

Thank the gods she didn't seem to be alone though, Lords and Ladies drifted through the room in an array of different emotions. Some went directly to the table seating to the left, scowls on their faces and discontent wives on their arms who obviously disliked the attire they'd been forced into. Others, mostly the younger of the Fae, seemed delighted in the clothing that Lady Sarah had sent out and were already making use of the dance floor and the bar.

"I will say one thing," she heard Cyric's voice at her ear, "when the Lady wants to throw a party that will shock, she really goes all out."

**Sarah** had outdone herself, was his first thought as he entered the ballroom and surveyed the scene before him. Dinner was almost over and his eyes still wandered the table, trying to pick out Medb's man. So far, there was no one sticking out in his mind as the one who could possibly be working for the woman.

Though there were a few people that were making a fuss over how 'odd' Sarah's party was. Demands had been made for more silverware between meals, some met for they were asked for politely, others ignored for their rudeness. The music was complained about by some, though the majority of the attendees were completely in love with the dance music, as Sarah told them it was called.

There was hardly a moment where someone wasn't out on the dance floor. Truly told, he couldn't wait to get Sarah out there. She had told him that the dancing at these parties could get quite suggestive. That would please some of the guests and force others to leave.

Good riddance, he thought.

When the dinner was finally over, several of the older guests said their thank you's, again, some kind and really just wanting to go home, others rude and wanting to make Sarah feel badly about her party. But he knew that she wouldn't take things to heart. She had thrown this party with the express intent on pissing a few people off. That knowledge made him smile.

She was fiery and no one would cross her when she came to be Queen. It pleased him that she wouldn't put up with them treating her as an inferior. No, his Sarah would always stand up and fight back. But that thought had him worrying a bit. She was frightened of Medb…and he couldn't blame her, but he had to fight to keep her confidence up. He couldn't have her backing out now that she had made her stand against the woman. Those were worries for another night. Tonight was for dancing.

And for keeping and eye out for whoever was spying for Medb.

It wasn't until Sarah pulled him closer to her and turned his face to hers that he even realized that he was staring off. "There is nothing you can do right now about that spy, so please try to have fun with me." He gave her a smile and started dancing with her in a provocative manner that those around them were picking up, but his eyes still wandered at times, trying to figure out who it was.

Sarah would be a hypocrite to say she wasn't doing the same thing from time to time though, he noted with a smile as his hands found her hips and he swayed to the beat with her. She had an advantage over him though, she was able to contain her fury in a way that he knew he never would. Sarah would have to deal with the fact that he was a very straight forward person, when he was mad, it showed and he was going to try to fix it.

Patience was not one of his virtues, which she should know by now.

Around him now was mostly the happy laughter and chatter of Fae having a good time. There was still the occasional comment about how 'human' this was, but the mood of the music and the seductive dance generally silenced that. When he spotted Jeaule and Cyric dancing across the room, their obvious chemistry was not going unnoticed.

"What the hell do they think their doing?" Jareth smiled down at her though he was thinking the same thing.

"Do I really have to explain it to you?" She sent him a derisive little frown as he maneuvered her over to the two who seemed lost in each other.

"You two be more careful," Sarah chided in a whisper to the two. "You forget that Medb has a spy here, you want her to know what you are doing Cyric?" They both stopped dancing so close as they silently thanked the two for their warning. Jareth danced Sarah away from them as easily as he'd danced her over.

"I can't blame them too much" he sighed as he held her close. "If we were in their place it would be hard for me to keep my hands from you." Sarah's head rested on his shoulder.

"I know, but I don't want either of them getting hurt." His hand rested on the back of her head soothingly.

"I know, love…I know." They kept themselves on guard for the rest of the night, not allowing themselves the centered passion that they had denied to Cyric and Jeaule. It would have been rude to tell them to stop only to steep themselves in each other. Near to midnight, the party had its first shocker.

Jareth heard the slap and the shocked gasp before he turned. Jeaule was running from the room, face in her hands, tears obvious though not seen. What in the name of the gods had happened to the girl? He and Sarah set out to find Cyric, thinking for sure the man had done or said something to offend her.

"What did you do to her?" Sarah accused when they finally found him walking back from Jeaule's room. When he turned to her, they both knew that her accusations were incorrect.

"I did nothing to her! I had left to get us drinks and I heard and saw what you did." A nervous hand swept through his hair. "I fear that Medb's spy said something to her…possibly even hit her." Sarah gasped, Jareth narrowed his eyes and turned to Cyric.

"Did anyone see who struck her?" Again Cyric's face looked tortured.

"No, she was in the shadows." The three of them stared at each other, all furious that nothing had been seen. "She won't let me into her room now an-"

"Let her be for now," Sarah interrupted. As the woman, they listened to her. "She needs to be alone with her thoughts, tomorrow I will talk to her." Jareth nodded and then looked around.

"I assume that the party is over now?" His love nodded and they went to tell everyone to leave. The fact that no attempts at anything beyond the bizarre happening with Jeaule had occurred, set all three on edge.

**Delight** rippled through her as she listened to Erina's report on the night. Medb could almost see it with her own eyes, the proud Goblin King looking over his shoulder for an attack she wasn't planning on making for quite a while. Erina's eyes danced with mischief on the other side of the communication crystal.

"Oh, one more thing Your Majesty," the girl continued. "I wasn't going to te-" Medb wasn't able to listen to the rest of what the girl had to say because Cyric came into the room and she was forced to destroy the communication crystal.

"So was that you little spy?" he asked with a bit too much distain in his voice. She really needed to dose the boy again. He would be of no use to her if he wasn't infatuated.

"Yes it was," she purred as she crossed to the lock boudoir door.

"Save it Medb, I don't want any tea." Her eyes narrowed as she spun on him. Did he know? How could he?

"What happened tonight Cyric?" It was his test, if he told her what Erina had, then perhaps it was ok. He stripped off the ridiculous golden shirt and dropped into a chair, draping a leg over the arm.

"They were both looking over their shoulders a lot and your little spy attacked the poor girl I escorted." Medb made sure to cover up her surprise at that information. The fact that the girl was attacked, not that he had one on his arm, for she could really care less. That girl didn't have him drugged…so good luck.

"Did they now?" He scoffed at her and crossed to get something to drink.

"Like you didn't know? I am sure that was all part of the plan." Why was he upset about that? Perhaps…

"You don't like being excluded from the plans do you?" Her blood boiled as she thought of him trying to get in on her power. He wasn't going to get anywhere near what she was working so hard for. If she had to kill him herself, she wouldn't let him work his way in on her coattails.

"I hate being excluded from what you are planning." If she only knew that it was an act of epic proportions that he was putting on now…he would be dead right then. "I want to be a part of this Medb, I want to know who your spy is in Jareth's court." Her eyes narrowed again and her magic shout out at the man, pinning him to the wall, much as Virden's last moments had been spent.

"Hear me, Cyric," she hissed as she gripped his face in her hand. "My plans are my own and if you attempt to interfere with them or slip your way into what I have worked myself ragged for…I will kill you." His chin firmed, remaining defiant.

"Why have me help you at all then?" he spat. "Surely I am a good enough trophy without having to be a ill cared for lackey?" His eyes were crystal fire on hers. "I want nothing of your power, only to know what you plan. Haven't I proved myself enough to you?" She thought a moment on that and let him fall to the floor.

"Indeed you have proved yourself quite loyal." That had to be what was bothering him. "I will let you in on some of my secrets then Cyric, but slowly." The smile that crossed his face was indistinguishable. "What do you want to know? One thing only for tonight."

"Who is your informant in the castle?" He hadn't wasted a thought on it and so, hadn't asked a specific enough question, she thought with a wicked grin.

"One of the maids." Anger was apparent on his face.

"Which one?" She 'tsk'd' him and tapped a finger to his nose.

"You already got your one question. Now you are finished." His rage was an almost palpable thing and it made her smile as she looked out the window towards the Goblin City.

"I wanted them on their toes tonight. Now that nothing has happened they will be looking over their shoulders for my revenge attack."

**(A/N: There you have it folks! Hope you enjoyed chapter 19! Things are really going to start going to crap now! wink So much fun to be had.**

**There is a new chapter of "The Diary of Jeaule Olincamp" for those of you who wondered why she ran from the ball! I am kind of glad that I started "The Diary of…" because it gives me a place to write what happens without having to put too much into this story. It's a nice place for people who want to know more about what is going on before it all really becomes apparent in the story! LOL**

**The people who pleased me with their reviews last week were: ****Brea is Gackt's Wife**** (I believe it would be called 'The Jewel of the Underground' or something to that effect…haven't really thought it through a whole lot yet.), ****darklady26**** (Sorry I haven't contacted you, my week was nuts and I haven't been at a computer. Talk to you soon! BTW- why do you hate Cyric!? LOL), ****Kerichi**** (Don't worry, not a LOT of Tur coming up, but enough), ****notwritten, saz89**** (lots of Jeaule and Cyric love, just for you! Lolol) and ****The Banshee's Tears.**


	20. Jeaule's Plans

**Disclaimer****: I do not own this, it belongs to the people that wrote the book and made the movie. Don't think that I am delusional enough to have illusions that this is in any way a world of my own creation. The only things that do belong to me are my original characters and the original settings and lands that I have created for the purpose of this story.**

**I make no money from this, only the SUPREME gratification of reviews. So please, make me a happy gal and review your butts off! **

**Something**_ was heavy and strange in the air of her dream that gave her notice that this wasn't of her own making. It was also strange that she knew the world around her to be a dream. She knew that she was in the Labyrinth, but if you had asked her where or even when, she wouldn't have known. This was a place she'd never been to with Jareth or on her quest all those years ago._

_The trees were scraggly and twisted with moss growing up their trunks in languid trails, like fingers grasping at the bark. Ropes of mossy vines and debris drooped like lazy tentacles from the rotting branches that creaked and cracked a dark symphony for the chilling forest. The ground below her didn't feel marsh-like as she had expected from the look of the trees, but it was sturdy, springy only because it too was moss covered._

_Overall, it was a haunting place to be alone and she was very, very alone. Sarah felt the panic seizing in her chest, she didn't know where she was…yes, there was definitely something very wrong here. She took a moment to wonder if she should call out for help before remembering that she knew this was just a dream._

_So she leaned back on one of the trees, determined to simply wait until her mind allowed her to wake up. It was the coldness sliding over her skin that stunned her body to stillness. She didn't want to turn her head to see what was there, for her mind already cringed with the knowledge of the snake that had to be slipping over her arm. _

_Unable to stand it, Sarah jumped from the tree and watched as the snake crawled its way back up the tree. When she heard the laughter, the poison laced honey tone of it, she felt the blood drain from her face and felt the cold sweat take over her entire being. Her mind wanted to hunt down the source and rip at its owner, but her body remained where it was._

"_You may be able to ban me from Jareth's kingdom, but you obviously can not shield me from your dreams." Medb stepped from behind a twisted tree, the sneer prominent on her face. It was Medb's stance more than anything that steeled Sarah's back and had her eyes narrowing. She wasn't about to let this woman terrorize her even in her dreams._

"_How dare you invade my dreams?" Sarah was pleased to hear her voice held no trace of fear, it was strong and authoritative. If that would have any effect on Medb, she couldn't be sure, but it helped her frayed nerves to hear it._

"_It pleases me to know that, while you do apparently have powers, that there is at least one place where you can't touch me." Sarah felt the lash of the magical whip before she even saw it. _

_The pain that ripped through her arm was acute and mind numbing. When her hand gripped the source of the pain, her mind reeled as she felt the liquid heat of her own blood. Sarah felt her body being shaken, but her eyes were glued to Medb, her magic spiraling around her in a vicious torrent of anger. Sarah wasn't sure what she was doing or if her magic was working of its own accord, but she felt it slice through the air in an arc towards Medb._

_It pleased her to see Medb's eyes go wide as magic made its way towards her. Everything seemed in slow motion as the vivid blue arc of power flew at the woman who had physically and emotionally assaulted her for the last time. Sarah only heard the startled gasp as her body was shaken violently again._

"Sarah! Wake the hell up!" Her eyes opened to see Jareth's face above her, how anyone could mix anger and worry was a mystery that only Jareth seemed capable of. And he was irritated with her, she could sense that much, but why?

"I know that I wasn't crying out in my sleep so what the-"

"That Sarah…" He pointed above them. When he moved off of her, she was able to see that their entire bed from them up to the canopy was slashed to pieces. There were splinters littering their bed clothing and stubborn scraps of wood clinging to the frame by only a few fibers. As her mouth opened in shocked, she felt Jareth's hand on her arm, "More importantly, this." She wanted to ask why he sounded ready to kill and yet sounded worried for her, but it didn't take her long to figure it out. His hand slid around and she felt the warmth and the thick slickness of it.

"But it was a dream," her eyes searched over the scene laid out before her again as doubt curled into a tight knot in her belly. "Wasn't it?"

The anger in his voice seemed to be melting, perhaps it had never been meant for her, "I don't believe so, love." He summoned the healer before he conjured a piece of cloth to wrap around her arm as a temporary bandage. When she looked up at him, his eyes were fiery and his mouth set in a grim line, this was not a happy man. "It was Medb wasn't it?"

"I don't know how she did it."

"I do." Jareth's voice had dropped to that frightening tone where Sarah knew that the Darkness was trying to take its foothold again. She gripped his arm and pulled him to her, resting her head on his chest.

"Then teach me how to stop it." His body was stiff against hers, sending her mind reeling as to what she could do next. "How do I keep it from happening again?" Sarah pulled his head down to hers so they were looking eye to eye, her forehead resting on his. She hoped the familiar gesture would snap him out of it.

When his eyes cleared, she thanked the gods, "I will teach you later, for now, I am calling a gathering for all that dwell or work in the castle. I want to set the seed in everyone to be on the look out for something strange." His hand brushed against her cheek.

"I think the grand throne room would make a nice…forceful gesture as a meeting place." She was pleased to see the smile spread over his face as it always did when her mind had pleased him.

"That it will, love. See to our attire, I will see to it that everyone attends." Lips brushed over her brow as he slid out of the shattered bed. "It appears that we need a new bed as well," he laughed as he got a good look at it from across the room. "I can hardly imagine what people will think when they see this." Sarah bit her bottom lip, refusing to laugh at his jibe.

"I assume they will think we are voracious and," she paused a moment for effect, "destructive lovers my dear." Again, that glorious smile spread over his face that was too often lined with worry or anger. She decided that being with him was worth the temper, the gods knew she had one of her own. At least their lives would never be boring, she thought as she carefully got out of bed.

It was a miracle that she emerged from the wreckage of a bed without a thousand splinters and from the look on Healer Gorbe's angular face as he made his way into the room…that was probably an understatement. He thrust a hand into his shock of white hair as he walked towards her.

"What in the name of the gods happened here?" Sarah damned Jareth silently for leaving her alone to explain this, but smiled at the healer. His eyes were wide and glued to the shrapnel that was left of the bed, jumping in shock as one of the legs snapped and the bed tilted without its support. She didn't feel like explaining, so grimaced and gripped her arm, hoping it would divert his attention. She won her bet, "Oh dear, what do we have here?"

"I guess I got hit by some of the wood?" He didn't look convinced as he looked at the deep, clean slice on her arm that couldn't have possibly come from a piece of flying wood.

"My dear, I have seen to splinters from fingers to butts," she started to laugh and he held up a hand, he was completely serious. "Don't ask and there won't be any embarrassed King's in this castle," he stated with a twinkle in his eye. Sarah let herself muse on that while the healer inspected her wound further. "This isn't from wood, is it my dear?" His voice was so soothing, and eyes were so sweet under those big bushy white brows that Sarah couldn't lie to him.

"No sir." His eyes narrowed, not in anger, but in thought.

"I didn't think so." Amused, almost opal colored, eyes glanced up at her, reminding her of a grandfather life had never given her. "Mind telling me what it was?" Her teeth nipped at her bottom lip, not sure if she should tell him. "You do know that confidentiality is something I take very seriously with my patients?" His voice was calm as he opened his case, taking out a salve to clean the slash on her arm.

"I know healer, it's just…" words failed her as she looked around the room. What was she supposed to tell him? A concerned glance pierced her as he dressed the wound.

"Lady…was it the king?" Her eyes flew open and she raised a hand in denial.

"No, no, no…Jareth would never hurt me!" Again, those opal eyes looked doubtful. She sighed, knowing she would have to tell him or have Jareth's name smeared with an act he didn't commit.

"I was attacked in my dreams, Healer Gorbe." A slow, low whistle escaped through his teeth as he finished the dressing.

"Been a while since something like that has happened here in the Goblin City" he commented as he packed his bag back up. "You must have some powerful enemies Lady Sarah." His words were nauseatingly honest. Wait…it wasn't his words. She felt…oh gods. She ran to the bathroom and barely reached her goal in time. The healer was on her in but a moment, surprisingly speedy for one apparently so old. Her stomach revolted against her again, draining her energy with it.

Once her body calmed itself, she rested her back against the wall, her head hanging, her body weak.

"Well, that sucked," was all her mind could muster at the moment. Healer Gorbe's hand was on her forehead, she could feel it, but she couldn't bring herself to acknowledge him.

"Dear, dear…" he muttered as he fussed over her.

"Is there something wrong with me?"

His white hair shook as he said, "No dear, things like this are quite common after an experience like you had this morning. Just take it easy and drink this," he advised, conjuring a cup of warm tea. "It will make you feel better in no time." Sarah thanked him again and saw him to the door, leaning back on it after he left and taking a sip of the soothing tea.

"Well…it isn't coffee…" she muttered as she all but toddled over to her dressing table. "Now," she sighed, looking at her face which had gone pale as the moon, "time to fix that."

Whatever had been in that tea, by the time she took her place standing next to Jareth's throne, she felt better. It made her a little uncomfortable to have to follow all these, to her, archaic rules, but such was the way of the Underground. She was not permitted to sit in the Queen's throne until she was Queen. Till then, she stood next to Jareth with a smile on her face and her hands politely clasped before her.

Maesia had drilled into her the perfect behavior that she would conduct herself with this morning and by the gods, she wouldn't let the woman down. Like she had said, "…once you're Queen, you can do as you wish, until then…understand and deal with it as best you can."

Once, Sarah had asked her why the Underground held so tightly to this era. She couldn't understand why time seemed to stand still in a mix between the Medieval times and the Renaissance times down here as the world bustled away in the Aboveground. Maesia had told her that it was because those were the times that the Fae had come to love the most.

It was as simple as that, they loved the romantic, gothic architecture that towered in their beautiful castles and squatted adorably in the outlying homes. The long, flowing clothing was also highly venerated. And though they would switch things up from time to time, they always found themselves back at this time.

Many other kings had attempted to bring their kingdoms into the Aboveground time, or at least an era beyond the old Arthurian tales, but it never held in place. Things would always dissolve back to this, so they had pretty much given up and were now content with the way things were. It wasn't like they didn't have modern amenities.

The bathtub, Sarah knew well was not a rustic medieval regular, nor the toilet she had made unexpected use of this morning. And the simple way they had marble and glass paned windows, some of them beautiful stained glass masterpieces, none of it seemed very medieval. It was the certain undeniable architectural oddities in the castle, they all spoke to her of the Baroque castles of the early 1700's or even more modern.

Sarah pulled herself out of her thoughts when Blix called attention to Jareth and told everyone to silence themselves. They were on, she thought as her hands clasped demurely before her. She only spared a moment to think that she didn't notice Jeaule. She should have been here, at the bottom of the stairs…there where Erina stood. She should have been standing right next to her. Where was she?

Probably still worked up over whatever happened at the ball. Sarah made a mental note to check on her friend after Jareth said his piece. And a piece he had to say, she thought as she fought not to smirk at his words.

"We have a dissenter amongst us." The crowd made appropriately aghast murmurings as he went on. "We have someone in our midst who wants to league themselves with Medb in her plot against my Lady." Still the whispers between everyone continued, probably people bouncing thoughts of who it could be off of one another. She felt Jareth's hand touch her and she knew it was her turn. They hadn't practiced this all morning to fail now.

"We need your help to find this person," Sarah said, knowing as Jareth did, that a little humility could get you a long way…not that he'd ever used it. She made sure to keep her eyes on the crowd before her, scanning the sea of faces endlessly for any sign of fright or worry that they were about to be caught. "We know that often you know far more about the inner workings of the castle than we do, so we ask you now to come together to help us find this dissenter."

The chorus of cheers wasn't what she had expected, but it pleased her that so many wanted to help. She knew that there were those in the crowd who could care less what happened to her, but their loyalty and love for their king had them clapping and agreeing to help. Jareth gripped her hand in his and when she looked down at him, gave her a smirk she knew that only she would recognize as one.

They spent the next hour greeting certain people and hearing their thoughts on who the dissident resident might be. Most were ridiculous notions concocted by people obviously just trying to get someone into trouble, some were credible enough for both she and Jareth to file away. Once they were done, worn and tired of the talk, they retired to their rooms.

Sarah was shocked and pleased to see a new bed in place of the disaster she had left that morning. It looked almost the same, but this one had a little more feminine appeal in the smooth curves of the wood. The wood was lighter and not has harshly masculine in its carvings. Again, it was a four poster, but the headboard was a new mastery of carving, the serene meadow with the little lake and waterfall to the left made her smile and wish she didn't tear this one to shreds.

The knock on the door had her remembering that she needed to go see Jeaule and make sure that the poor girl was alright. When Jareth admitted the very person she had hoped to see, the smile that crossed her face was instant and bright. The fact that Jeaule did not return her smile made her heart plummet to her stomach.

"What's wrong Jeaule?" She asked as she crossed to the girl who stood, back straight and face blank. She looked so different and yet so the same that Sarah wasn't sure what to do with her. Jeaule seemed so sure of herself now, not acting the meek maid, but looking both her and Jareth straight in the eyes. Yes, there was something wrong with her, but whatever it was, it had made her stronger that ever.

"What I have to tell you won't make you happy." When she spoke, it was Jeaule, Sarah was pleased to at least hear the sadness and worry in the girl's voice. If Jeaule had been completely lost to whatever demons were biting at her, Sarah didn't know what she would do.

Jareth, in his usual brisk matter, pushed ahead without care to the girl's feelings. Not out of meanness, but out of eagerness to hear what she had to say.

"What is it?" Jeaule crossed to sit in one of the chairs in the room. Sarah quickly followed suit, feeling like if she let her get too far away, she might never learn what Jeaule had to say.

Jeaule was calm, almost too calm, her blonde hair with a halo of light around it from the mid morning sun outside. Her clothing was laid perfectly about her as she crossed her fingers in her lap. She had prepared herself for this meeting with them, Sarah had no doubt, had probably practiced what she was going to say from the look in her eyes. What could be so important and so dear to her?

"I know something that can end Cyric's life if I tell you," Sarah gasped as those amber eyes turned to her, "but end yours if I don't." Sarah was dumbfounded as she laid a hand on Jeaule's knee.

"Oh Jeaule," she comforted as she tried to soothe her friend. "No wonder seem so out of sorts." Jareth didn't seem in the mood to caudle the girl as he knelt before her.

"You have to tell us what you know." Sarah wanted to smack him and tell him to be a little more careful with people's feelings. It was obvious that she loved Cyric, this had to be a terrible decision for her, but all he saw was that there was a way to save her, she couldn't really blame him for his rash speech.

"I know and I am going to, but," she added as he was prepared to push for the information, "you have to listen to me and trust me." There was doubt in Jareth's eyes that was about to be vocalized when Sarah placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I trust you Jeaule, so he will have to as well." Jeaule sighed at that and her ridged posture relaxed. The poor thing had probably been frightened senseless to come here and tell her king that he had to listen to her, but Sarah silently commended her that she'd found the courage to do just that.

"I have a plan that could cancel out both of those horrible endings." Sarah took the hand that was gripping at the brass colored material of Jeaule's dress. The least she could do was give the girl some comfort while she told them her plan. "I know who Medb's plant is." Jareth jumped up from his spot at her side, ready for battle, but was shocked when Jeaule's hand grabbed his. "You can't take any action against them."

Jareth's brow furrowed as looked to Sarah in frustration, "The hell I can't."

"No really, you can't…if you do, Cyric dies." Jareth was probably ready to tell her to hell with Cyric, but Sarah jumped in.

"Then we will keep quiet, but how do you promise that this will protect me?" Jareth fumed as he fell into a seat on the couch opposite them. Sarah saw the confidence in Jeaule's eyes that Sarah had never seen before, the girl had a plan, the least they could do was hear her out.

"We have to keep the plant thinking they are safe until my plan runs its course," she gave a little huff of laughter as she ran a hand through her hair. "Or at least until I find a way to keep Cyric safe."

"What are you planning?" Jareth asked, perhaps he saw the spark in Jeaule's eyes that Sarah did, but he was sitting forward, arms resting on his knees, waiting for Jeaule to tell them both her plan.

"Well, it will be rather easy for me to get in good with the plant, it's my sister." Sarah and Jareth leaned back in their seats at the same time, both giving a sigh. It wasn't as much of a shock to them as she might have thought. Several of the people who they had talked to that very day had thought that she might be the one. Everyone knew that she didn't like Sarah and there were times recently when they had simply thought her evil. "I am going to tell her that I want to help her. Helping her, I would know exactly what is planned against you, things that Cyric wouldn't know."

"Jeaule," Sarah said, leaning forward again, "you do realize that it might be difficult for her to believe you since you have become friends with me?" Jeaule nodded, apparently she had.

"I have that covered too." She scooted forward on her chair, her voice confident and clear. Sarah was almost pleased that the girl had fond her backbone at last, she just felt bad that it had come at the cost of her sister. "I am going to tell her that she is far more important to me than you ever could," at this she rolled her eyes and shook her head as she laughed. "Which at this point simply isn't true anymore," Sarah could almost see the tears building in her eyes.

"What did she do Jeaule?" When Jeaule lifted her head, the tears were there, but there was a fierceness, a proud determination that kept them from falling.

"She threatened Cyric's life." Sarah couldn't believe the depths to which Erina had sunk. To do something like that to her own sister was just unthinkable. "So I will tell her that I will do anything to help, anything to keep her from being caught." With a heavy sigh, she finished her plan, "and I will ask her to take me to Medb."

"Oh Jeaule no!" Sarah couldn't think of her friend near that woman. "What if she sniffs you out!?" Jeaule looked more determined than ever as she looked up into Sarah's eyes and she knew that Jeaule would not be talked out of this.

"You let me worry about that."

**Jeaule** clasped her diary closed and hid it in the same way as she had all these years, knowing that now, more that ever, it held secrets that no one else could see. Now it held the detailed secrets of her plan against her sister and Medb. Her personal feelings written within the pages meant nothing to anyone now, but those plans…those plans could and would intrigue many.

Her diary hidden, Jeaule crossed to the window of her tiny room and looked towards Medb's kingdom. Cyric was there, playing his role. Was he sickened by it now that he had told her what he felt? She found her mind wandering to thoughts of what he did with her.

Did he still have to make love to Medb to keep her suspicions at bay? Did he hold her and kiss her? Did he play his part so well that Medb believed that he loved her? It made Jeaule sick to her stomach to think of him doing these things now that he had kissed her.

Jeaule knew now that he loved her, now that he knew the feelings were reciprocated, would he be able to play his part anymore? Her heart clenched as she thought that after all she had planned, if he didn't keep up the act that made her physically ill…he might die anyways. Why did everything have to be so complicated, she thought with a sigh.

Why couldn't everything be easy? Because life isn't easy, she admitted reluctantly. Life wasn't there to baby you along, it was thrown in your face and you had to make the best of it. Until now, she had been sheltered from the worst of it, but it appeared that life also had a way of making up for that. As his face came to her minds eye again, she smiled and knew that if she could have him in the end, everything would be worth it.

With a contented smile, Jeaule focused and sent her magic out, a subtle call for Cyric to answer. This was not the first time she had done this, nor would it be the last. They had communicated in this way since Sarah had told them to work together on the night of the dinner party gone awry.

She loved the feel of his magic when it came back it was such an elemental thing that it made her senses all but sing at the touch of it. As she waited, she tried to think of what it felt like. She closed her eyes and brought the memory of his magic to her mind. It was a warm like a warm caress that brought the smell of rain with it.

Lost in the memory of his magic, she almost missed it when it really touched her. From the positive energy of it, she knew that he was alone and it was safe to conjure the communication crystal. His face filled the glistening surface of her crystal and while she smiled at him on the outside, her mind was ready to cry for the knowledge that, because of her sister, they couldn't be together for quite a while.

"What's the matter?" Could he see through her so soon? Could he see the inner demons that were clawing at her? She couldn't tell him what she knew over the communication crystal, it was too unsafe. By the time she was done at Medb's castle, he would know what was going on and hopefully, he would wait for her.

"Nothing, well, not nothing." She sounded pathetic, even to herself, but she couldn't tell him like this. His eyes narrowed in worry, but she forced herself no to look. "Look, I might be over at Medb's castle today if all plans go the way I am hoping."

His eyes were bewildered as he stared out at her from the crystal, "But why are you going to be here?" It stabbed her soul not to be able to tell him, but she held her tongue in check.

"I can't tell you, but if I do show up, I need you to trust me and just go along with anything I might say. Can you do that for me, Cyric?" His brow furrowed, obviously not happy with being left in the dark, but he nodded.

"I trust you, Jeaule. I will go along with you." Her smile was sudden and it pleased her that it seemed to relieve some of his worry as well.

"Cyric…I-" the rest of her words were lost to the moment as Erina walked through her door, her face contorted into a wicked little smirk. The communication crystal shattered into dust in Jeaule's hand as she sent out a quick reassuring pulse of her power to Cyric, so he would know she was ok.

"It's no fun to be barred from the one you want is it sister dear?" Jeaule cringed inside and out as she realized that, however warped or twisted the logic, her sister did have a point.

"At least it isn't me who is barring you from Jareth, I am your flesh and blood Erina, how could you-"

"How could YOU befriend the one who has denied me what I want?!" Erina cut in, attempting to slice Jeaule down with her words. It didn't work, but for the sake of her plan, Jeaule had to pretend that it did and so she bent her head, summoning tears to aid her.

"I thought you might come around…" she choked out, praying to the gods that her acting was good enough. "I thought…I thought you might get over it and be my sister again, but I was wrong." Erina smiled at her show of weakness, thank the gods she was falling for this, but she was one thing…Medb was quite another.

"No I didn't. What are you going to do now, sister?" That was the opening Jeaule had hoped for and she sprung on it like a lioness on a wounded gazelle.

"I want to help you." That shocked Erina into a dumbfounded silence. "I want to help because I know that if you stay this alone, you will be caught and I don't want anything to happen to you." Though it made her insides cringe to touch this thing that was no longer her sister, her hands grasped out at Erina's arms. "You are my sister, I said we are flesh and blood, that means so much more to me than any friendship with an outsider." Erina's eyes narrowed.

"How do you plan to help?"

"Take me to Medb, let her know that I am helping you," Jeaule planted the seeds of Erina's downfall as easily as if she had been born to do it. Perhaps she was, she thought with an inner wonder at the mysteries of life. "Both of Sarah's handmaidens working against her…how could Medb refuse such leverage as that?" There was still doubt in her sister's sapphire eyes, she had to do her best to squash that. "How could you refuse help from someone who wants nothing of you but your silence, who is your flesh and will do anything to see to it that you get what you want?" That was what her sister needed to hear.

Jeaule knew that Erina would try to do something stupid that would cross Medb, it was written in her eyes as she stared down at Jeaule. Just as she knew that Erina would try to use her in that plan. That was not a wise course of action and Jeaule would make sure that she would be in Medb's favor when it happened, perhaps even be the one who turned her in to Medb. In the end, Erina would be in the fire and Jeaule knew that she would have to watch her burn.

**(A/N: I know…leaving you with yet another cliffy. Sorry, but I do so enjoy it. LOL I hope you enjoyed the chapter and I REALLY hope that you enjoy the ones to come! I also want to thank all of you for getting New Crystals, Old Dreams to 10,000 hits! That in itself made my entire week!! **

**There is a corresponding chapter of ****"The Diary of Jeaule Olincamp"**** to go along with this chapter. I would love it if you read and reviewed that one as well as this! Every one of you know how much I ADORE getting reviews, they make me all warm and fuzzy inside.**

**The people that made me warm and fuzzy last week were: ****Bookworm Brea**** (Another Happy B-day from me! Nice guess and I am sure lots of people wanted to kill Erina, there might even be a line now…), ****darklady26**** (I talk to you all the time about this story, so just some love for my soul sister here!), ****Kerichi**** (I'm glad that you love the amusing lines and times in the story, too bad times are getting a bit darker for them now.), ****notwritten, saz89**** (I am so glad that you love Jeaule and Cyric as much as you do. That makes me a happy, happy gal that my originals are loved. As always your wonderful and complete love of this story makes my day!), ****The Banshee's Tears.**


	21. A Wary Double Agent

**Disclaimer****: I own neither the rights to this story nor to its characters. I simply borrow the settings and characters you know in an effort to give this story a base in something you know and love. The only things that are mine are my own original characters and the original settings they reside in, as well as the storyline. No money is made from this, but if you didn't know all of this by now, then you simply aren't reading this, for which I wouldn't blame you…these damn things are boring.**

**Having** to reduce herself to wearing a robe and playing hermit in her rooms for the next few days was just another point Medb had added to her 'Reasons to Kill the Crossbreed' list this morning. Under the thin slip of fabric that served as her apparel for the day, she could already feel the bandages had soaked through with her blood.

"How in the name of Cernunnus' antlers did that girl learn how to do something like that!?"

"Jareth probably taught her…" was Cyric's glib answer. Her eyes rolled his way as she gave an undignified snort. She'd meant that rhetorically, but she could always count on Cyric lately to throw in that annoying little remark you never wanted to hear.

She leaned back against the window sill as she waited for the healer to come up and change her dressings. Medb knew that she had been pouting and fuming all morning about the deep gash that ran from her right shoulder, between her breasts and down to the left side of her waist. It had been an interesting feat to dress the wounds properly without turning her into a walking mummy.

Cyric had taken a few choice moments to chuckle at her misery and she had to wonder if he wasn't starting to simply get used to the potion. He was still loyal to her, so that part of it had to still be working, but they hadn't been intimate in a while. It was strange to her that it hadn't bothered her in the least.

Until now.

Now that she couldn't make love to him if she wanted to, it enraged her that he seemed to not want to. He just sat there on the window seat and either stared out or read books all day. Like he was doing now, she mused with an irritated huff as the healer came in, his silent personae an off putting presence.

"Go to the library or something," she sniped. Medb didn't want him there to see her wounds. It was enough that the healer had to know how badly she was injured, but he wasn't about to actually SEE it. He got up from his perch by the window a bit too brusquely, it was obvious that he didn't want to see her wounds either, but was it because he didn't care or because he was squeamish? She knew that he wasn't the latter….

She simply ignored the stout little man who was already efficiently removing her bandages while his nimble, stubby little fingers kept her from going into another dizzying bout of pain. Her mind stayed locked on thoughts of what to do about dear little Cyric.

Was it time for her to simply let him go? If he wasn't doting on her anymore, even dosed, what good was he? If she did indeed decide to let him go, then she would have to ponder the bigger question…how would she dispose of him? She laced her hands behind her head as the healer asked so he could access all of her impressive wound and contemplated her options.

She could, of course, kill him herself. That might be a bit to prosaic though, she killed lackeys not those who shared her bed. Those earned at least the right of being eternally silenced by another hand. But then, was she going to kill him at all…?

He truly had proved far more useful than any of her other lovers, perhaps she would let him live for that. An accidental slip of stubby fingers hand her hissing out a vicious stream of inventive cursing.

"Watch what you're doing you dolt!" she screamed, the healer looking up at her with his usual non pulsed stoic gaze. "Healers are a dime a dozen in this kingdom!" It was a very true statement, she thought as she smacked him over the head, earning another sharp pain for the wide movement. With the ever going contest for her hand, men were hurt and killed daily…healers weren't a scarce thing in her lands. "I could replace you faster than I could kill you, so watch what you are doing!"

"Yes Your Highness." He murmured as his hands went back to work on the dressings. He finished her dressings quickly and efficiently, most likely just wanting to be rid of her company. It didn't upset her in the least, she didn't much care for his company either so the faster he worked, the faster she could kick him from her rooms.

She pulled her robe shut as the squat little healer was leaving the room Her guard was coming in the room at the same time and had to sidestep to avoid being run into by the tiny man. The disdain for the healer was apparent on his face as he sneered at him before turning to Medb with a bow.

"Your contact at the Goblin Kingdom is here to see you milady." A careless wave of her hand was Erina's admittance. When the girl walked in, Medb knew that she was going to ask a favor or…something that wasn't going to please her.

"Your Highness," she gave the honorific as she executed a demure curtsey, never taking her eyes from Medb's. This girl was getting a big head…and big heads never worked well with her.

"What do you want, Erina?" The slow smile that spread over Erina's face was enough to make Medb want to smack it right off.

"I have a great offer for you Your Grace." Medb rolled her eyes, what could this girl possibly offer her that she would care about? She lounged back in one of her great chairs and lazily circled her hand in a signal for the girl to get on with it. "I have another spy for you."

"I have no need for another spy Erina. You are enough for me to bother with." She watched as Erina's jaw set, the girl was determined.

"But she is Sarah's trusted handmaiden." Medb narrowed her eyes and the girl's choice of words.

"I thought you were also Sarah's handmaiden?" It was obvious now that Erina was getting uncomfortable as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other and wet her lips.

"I am, but my sister-"

"Your sister!?" Medb cut her off. She sighed as she looked down at the girl, raven hair falling over her face as she inclined her head again.

"Yes Your Highness." Erina stumbled for her words. "Jeaule will be quite the addition, she has earned Sarah's trust in a way that I have not. They became friends, Your Grace." Medb's eyes narrowed further, anger starting to brew.

"If she is friends with the crossbreed, how can I trust her you pathetic idiot!?" Erina cringed at her words and rightfully so, stupid fool. "She obviously knows that you are my spy in the castle…what stops her from telling the King and his little bitch about that?" Erina's eyes snapped up to hers confidence back in spades.

"I have something against her, Your Highness, she will never tell on me." That proud little chin stuck out as she continued. "She is my sister, bound to me by blood and now," she gave a wicked grin, "by blackmail as well." Medb leaned back in her chair again, contemplating. "I promise you, she will not let you down."

"If she does, it will be your head I take first, girl." Erina gulped subtly then turned and nodded to Medb's guard who left the room. When the doors opened again, Medb wanted to rip Erina from limb to limb.

The girl who entered looked rose petal soft and walked at a meek and respectful pace to her sister's side. Her shimmering hair was milky blonde of all colors and her eyes made Medb think of a docile doe grazing in a meadow, ever watchful of hunters around her.

She wasn't at all what Medb would want in a spy.

The girl looked weak and meek and, she grudgingly admitted, someone that would pass under the radar when people thought of who a spy could be. This girl would never be assumed to betray someone that was apparently her friend. Perhaps this could go her way after all.

"Why do you want to help…" Medb looked to Erina for the girls name again.

"Jeaule, Your Highness."

"Jeaule?" Medb locked the girls gaze, though it seemed the girl was almost shaking, her hands twisting over each other nervously in front of her. "Timid little mouse indeed. Why do you want to help me?"

"I want to help my sister." The answer and the speed with which it had been answered, surprised her. It interested her enough to have her leaning forward, biting her tongue at the pain that lanced through her body.

"You know that to help your sister is to help me?" That head, with all its soft and delicate features nodded to her.

"I want to protect and help my sister and this is the best way to do so, Your Highness." She watched as the girl let her hands fall to her sides and stepped forward. Perhaps not quite the timid mouse she had thought. "My sister isn't the best at being subtle, Your Grace." Medb had to smother a smirk as Erina gaped at her sister. Perhaps not the timid little mouse that you thought either, Erina. "I believe that if I don't help her, the King and his betrothed will find her out within the week." Medb wasn't convinced that was all the reason the girl had. It looked like there was something more that she wanted to say.

"What else my child…I can see your mind working." Eyes that had been intent on the floor before her a moment ago, met hers with a strength that made Medb a little uneasy.

"I want to know what you plan to do with Cyric of Dendum when you achieve your goal of having Jareth as a partner." The sheer boldness of the question had Medb laughing before she pinned Erina with a hard glare for having told the girl some of her plans. She would have to be punished for that error, but for now, this delightfully surprising girl before her with the deceptive doe eyes was far more intriguing.

"It's all about men with the two of you isn't it?" She let her tongue run over her teeth as she thought it over. It was true that she hadn't known what she was going to do with Cyric, what was the harm of simply passing him off to this girl? Truly, it would be far easier than arranging his death and FAR easier for her than simply letting him go home.

For a strong man like Cyric, she thought with a smirk, passing him on to a girl like Jeaule might be worse than killing him. He would be bored to tears for the rest of his natural years. That amused her enough to have her smiling at Jeaule and nodding her head.

"You may have him if that is your condition for helping me." This would be most amusing, most amusing indeed.

**Jeaule** wanted to heave a sigh of relief, but knew that wasn't something she would be able to do in Medb's company. She did however, let a smile slide gently over her features. Jeaule wanted Medb to think her forward enough, but ultimately wanted to stay the quiet girl who wouldn't get on her bad side. Her composure was about to be tested though as Medb's doors opened and Cyric walked in.

"Ah, there he is." Medb cooed, holding a hand out for Cyric, who was looking at Jeaule, his expression a bit hard to read. It was floating somewhere between wonder and confusion as to what the hell she planned to do here. She really wished she had told him more when she had spoken to him earlier. Jeaule silently rebuked herself for the oversight as Medb rested her hand on Cyric's arm. "You must meet our new friend, Cyric." His eyes roamed over her, trying to take in and decide for himself what she was up to.

"It's a pleasure to meet you miss." She demurely inclined her head. "I trust your visit here has gone well." Everyone else in the room missed the icy undertone of his voice, but not Jeaule. He wanted to know what was going on and she didn't blame him one bit.

"It's been a pleasure so far, milord." Jeaule watched Medb's eyes glow with mischief before turning to Cyric.

"She has made quite the prosperous trip today Cyric." Jeaule's breath caught in her throat. Medb was going to tell him what just happened. Oh gods…he didn't know what was going on. This was going to be bad. "We just got done making a little deal as a matter of fact." Cyric's eyes narrowed ever so slightly at the insinuation in Medb's words and it took Jeaule control over every muscle in her body not to stiffen up and look like a frightened deer.

"Do tell." His voice was flat and almost cold. Jeaule could hear Erina sniggering behind her. Her body wanted her to spin around and smack her sister into silence, but her mind told her to stay still and appear nonchalant.

"Oh, why I just bartered you off to this lovely young lady." Cyric's body went stock straight as his eyes narrowed to slits of chilling ice.

"Oh really," he was furious, everyone in the room knew it, but only Medb and Erina seemed amused by it. Jeaule wanted to send her magic out to him, to calm him, but it was too risky that Medb might sense it. She had to remain silent, though it was breaking her heart to do so. "So I am reduced to a sack of grain then, Medb? To be bartered off at your leisure?" His eyes bored into Medb, who simply sat there smiling at him and looking quite amused, before spinning to Jeaule. "Well, this sack of grain doesn't feel like being part of this conversation anymore." Jeaule's heart lurched in her chest as his eyes seared into hers.

Oh gods, did he think that she had really switched sides? She should have told him more. Damn, damn, damn. There was nothing she could do now though, not until she was alone again. She had to stand, silent as a statue, as he stormed from the room, doors slamming shut behind him.

"Now, that didn't go well did it?" Medb's low laugh was rich and jovial…and enforced Jeaule's desire to bring her down. How could she do that to Cyric? She knew very well how, the woman didn't give a flying care in the world about anyone but herself.

"No I don't believe it did." Medb mistook her quiet anger for upset over Cyric's actions…all the better that she didn't have to explain why she was angry.

"Oh come, come, don't you worry yourself over how he is acting. There are…ways of making him more compliant." Jeaule's mind snapped to attention. No, it couldn't be this easy. Could it?

"Ways, Your Highness?" Though it made her ill to watch, she kept the intrigue on her face as Medb's split in a mischievous grin.

"Of course, he never really cared for me either." Jeaule feigned ignorance and brought a hand to her bosom.

"But Your Grace, he seemed so in love." The impish grin widened as she got up from her chair. Jeaule noticed with a mental smirk that she winced ever so slightly with the effort to do so. Hopefully, Sarah had given her a wound worthy of what she had done to her friend.

"Indeed he did…didn't he?" Jeaule didn't follow the woman until she was told to do so, unlike her sister, who earned a scowl for her impertinence. "I might as well give it to you now, since I don't plan on keeping him and it appears you will need it." Jeaule smiled on the outside while tears welled on the inside. Oh gods, please don't let him hate me now. Please let him understand.

"Give me what Your Grace?" Medb drew a key from the pocket of her robe. The small brass key was long and slender, topped with an intricate eternity knot. "A key…?" She didn't have to act to keep her voice filled with confusion. Jeaule had expected the love potion Medb had used on Cyric…not a damn key. What was she going to do with a stupid key?

"No," Medb laughed as she crossed the room to two heavy looking doors. "Something far better than a key, my child." Jeaule heard the key click in the lock and didn't hold back the gasp of wonder as the doors opened in front of her.

The room before them now was a kaleidoscope of colored bottles of all shapes and sizes. There were shelves, four high, all along the back wall of the little boudoir that were filled to bursting with them. Jeaule crossed to them as Medb did, fascinated by the rich jewel tones of some and the soft pastels of others. She must have a potion for everything, Jeaule thought as her fingers itched to touch the beautiful bottles glittering just beyond her reach.

She watched, anticipation setting her back straight as a pin, as Medb reached for a small frosted pink bottle on the third shelf. Its stopper was a delicately blown, glass heart that faded from the frosted pink at the bottom to crystal clear at the top. It was simply stunning. And Jeaule didn't need Medb to tell her that it was the potion she had used on Cyric all this time, but she asked anyways, because she wasn't supposed to know about all that.

"This is a very potent love potion, Jeaule." Jeaule let her mouth hang agape in wonder as her fingers lifted reverently towards the frosty glass. "I just brewed some more, so this should last you a while. If you run out…" she trailed off, tapping the glass with her long fingernails. "You had better hope you are still on my good side so I will make you more."

"I will do my best to remain on your good side, Your Majesty." Jeaule hoped that the utter disdain that she felt for the woman was masked enough for her to believe everything that was coming out of her mouth. Apparently, she would make Sarah proud, because Medb held the bottle out to her. Jeaule took the tiny glass bottle in her hands and felt its cold, frosted surface. If she hadn't known what the contents were capable of, she would have thought it beautiful, but since she did, she simply thought of the glass in her hands as a way of fixing Cyric for good.

"We must go now, Your Highness." Erina's voice was clipped and irritated. Surely she was perturbed that Jeaule had gotten a gift and she never had. Jeaule smiled to herself and curtseyed once more to Medb, vowing to wash herself thoroughly when she got home to cleanse herself of the soiled feeling she'd had since she'd first walked into Medb's room.

"Very well," Medb said to Erina in a dismissive as they left the boudoir. "Take good care of that bottle of yours, girl." Jeaule inclined her head in agreement, silently cheering that it had been as simple as that to get her hands on the potion. Erina gripped her wrist painfully as they teleported, letting her go only when they were in the safety of Jeaule's room.

"This is all working out too perfectly," Erina chuckled merrily as she spun about in the middle of Jeaule's room. Jeaule on the other hand was trying to gain her bearings, because the moment she had arrived in her rooms, she had felt Cyric's magic calling out to her. It was edged with a icy hot feeling of anger and irritation.

"What do you mean, Erina?" Jeaule tried to shake off the frightened feeling she had as she kept feeling Cyric's magic touching her, trying to call out to her. She couldn't answer him now, he would have to get the hint, because she couldn't send out her own magic, not with her sister in the room.

"I man Medb just took you in like you were a long lost daughter or something! It was amazing!" Erina giggled madly as she wrapped her arms around her sister. "I can't believe she GAVE you Cyric and the potion as well." Jeaule had a wicked thought and let a smile glide over her face.

"I guess there isn't much need for you now is there?" Erina stopped at that, narrowing her eyes and looking her sister over coolly.

"There is a need for me, because you still need Medb's favor. If you try to tell your little friends about what is going on and they stop me, she will know it was you and she will kill you." Jeaule knew that she was right, but she didn't want to admit it. It was hard to concentrate when Cyric's magic was like a constant fly on the back of her neck. Hopefully, he would be able to wait long enough for Erina to say her piece and leave. "I just think it's amazing that Medb herself is funding my plan to take Jareth from her." That caught Jeaule's attention as she set the little pink bottle down on her desk.

"What in the name of the gods are you talking about, Erina?" she asked cautiously, more nervous than ever that her sister was walking herself right into the gallows. "Medb already promised that you could have Jareth's body. Why do you have to undermine her?" Erina's nose scrunched as her lip curled in distaste.

"I don't want to be the midnight whore. I want to be his queen!" Jeaule let her head hang, she didn't have to pretend a LOT around her sister.

"You are a fool. How do you plan on that?" Jeaule almost swatted away the forceful caress of Cyric's power as her sister sat down on her bed.

"I plan to use that lovely little potion that she so conveniently handed over to you sister dear." Jeaule gasped, gripping the bottle up in her hands again. "I think we can start using it on him right away to get him to start looking my way." Jeaule shook her head.

"No Erina, that is a stupid risk and anyways, you would have to be alone with him. He doesn't allow you alone with him, everyone knows how obsessed you are with him, you will never get the chance." Erina pouted as Jeaule watched the wheels turning in her head.

"We will have to do it after Medb gets him then, when I have him alone at night. Once he is mine, he will overthrow Medb," she said with an evil grin. "Maybe even kill her." While Jeaule agreed that Medb was better dead that alive, that plan was suicide. Jeaule's mind was racing as she shrugged off another of Cyric's attempts to contact her.

She knew that she had to get to Sarah and Jareth to tell them that her plan had been successful so far. Far more successful that she had planned actually, but Erina kept talking. Her sister went on and on about the great times that they will have once everything had fallen into place for them and they had the men they wanted. She had to sit there and smile all the while feeling Cyric trying to contact her.

He wasn't getting happier either. His magic was getting more and more abrupt and instead of the warm caress that smelled of rain…now it felt like a thunderstorm. It broke her heart to have to sit there, feeling him getting more and more upset as her sister droned on and on about a past that would never happen.

**Worry** for her friend had Sarah wringing her hands as she waited for Jeaule to return from Medb's kingdom. The sky was darkening outside, casting an eerie glow over the Goblin Kingdom that seemed to carry a sense of calm. This was always her favorite part of the day in the Underworld, with the pinks and oranges of sunset making the view of the Goblin City quaint instead of perhaps a bit ramshackle.

Though that wasn't what her eyes were on at the moment. As one hand gripped at her injured arm unconsciously, Sarah's emerald gaze was set on where Jareth had shone her Medb's kingdom lay. Her thoughts ran back to her dream and what that woman's plans were doing to her friend, a friend who would go out of her way to never hurt a soul. It made Sarah's blood boil to think of it.

"Calm down love," Jareth soothed behind her, resting his arms on her shoulders. Sarah sighed, leaning her head back against his chest.

"How do you know when I am getting mad?" She turned her body and smiled as his forehead dipped down to rest against hers. "I didn't even say anything."

"I can sense your magic, it was all but spinning around you." Sarah felt his lips, warm and soft, against her forehead and felt the anger melting. "I think just about every person in this wing must have felt it," he joked.

"I need to get control of this Jareth, someone could get hurt if I don't." It was true, it made her sick to think of, but it was true. They both could have been killed that morning when she shredded their bed into sawdust. Her body shivered as she thought of that, Jareth dead, her dead…and all because of Medb.

"Stop it Sarah…" Jareth's voice was soft and comforting…and told her that her magic was out of control again. "I can teach you to protect your dreams, but emotional control over your powers is something you have to get used to on your own." Her eyes darted to his.

"You have to be kidding me? How am I supposed to control something that I have no idea how to control?" His lips pursed as he obviously tried to think of a way to describe it for her.

"You have to separate the two, try it with feelings of Medb." She was about to ask more questions when his hand came up, denying her even that. "You just have to get angry or sad…and then…" his brows knotted, words failing him. "Then focus on your magic and calm it." Her lower lip pouted despite her, and a restless hand slapped to her hip.

"I don't feel like taking on that puzzle just yet." Her arms wrapped around him and she rested her head on his chest, breathing in the scent of him. And it was an intoxicating smell. She didn't know if it was him or his magic, it was most likely a bit of both, that smelled of starlight and felt like an ocean breeze. "Just teach me the dream stuff."

"Very well." He sounded like he wasn't looking forward to it, but he always sounded that way before he was going to teach her anything. They worked their way to the library and he had her sit back on the sofa where she had learned most of her magic. "Drink this," he offered as he conjured her a cup of…something.

"What is it?"

"Something that will make you sleep and make me teaching you this all the easier." Sarah brought the cup to her lips and drank deeply of the nutty concoction that tasted a bit too much like tea for her tastes. What was it with these people and tea…? "Ok, now what?" she asked, slapping her hands down on her knees.

Jareth leaned back in a chair and closed his eyes, "Fall asleep." Sarah rolled her eyes and narrowly avoided saying, 'Duh.'

"Aye, aye captain," was what she opted for. It was still a bit snippy, but there was enough humor in it to bring a smirk to Jareth's lips. With a defeated sigh, Sarah lay back and closed her eyes.

And was gone.

When she opened her eyes again, she was still in the library, but not on the sofa. The lighting was different as well, slanting at a far lower angle, suggesting sunset when she knew it to be mid afternoon. Her brow knit as she tried to think of what Jareth was getting at with this foolishness.

That was when she felt it…the sudden prickling along her neck. It had been what she'd felt when Medb had shone up in her dream, though she hadn't recognized it then. Was that something she was supposed to be feeling for? Was that the signal that someone was invading the privacy of her dreams?

She heard clapping coming from behind shelves across the library and then his voice, "Very good Sarah." He stepped out from his concealed spot on the other side of the library, a small half smile on his face. She grinned, wide and proud that he she had obviously done as she was supposed to. "But," he started, causing her smile to flip into a pout.

"There is always a but with you isn't there?" Jareth sat in the chair she knew him to be sleeping in outside of the dream. In that easy, graceful way of his, he draped a leg over one of its arms, signaling to her that he was nearing boredom and she needed to do something else to keep his attention on the course at hand.

"Of course, love…when it's yours." She rolled her eyes at the corny pun as he merely smiled at her, but something wasn't right. Why was he so casually corny? He was never casually corny. He was trying to distract her from something. "Again, well done. Never let an intruder distract you for a moment."

"How did you know that I knew…?" That liquid smile spread over his face again.

"Because I know you Sarah, we are linked remember? That's why teaching you is so much easier for me." He stood and walked over the grand fireplace that dominated the wall in front of the sofa that she knew herself to be asleep on. "Now, protect yourself without hurting me."

"How-" she barely got the word out when she felt his magic push her, knocking her on her butt. "Well, damn it. Let me get my bearings," she snapped as she heaved herself back to her feet, only to be sent to her rump again with another snap of his power.

"Medb won't give you time, protect yourself Sarah." She stood again and again she felt his power shove at her, but she made up her mind that she wasn't going to fall on her ass again. Shock set in as she realized that she wasn't on her butt…she was several feet back, having stumbled, but she was still standing. "Good…now again."

He didn't let up on her, slowly increasing the strength of his shoves as she learned how to manipulate her magic around her to form a shield of protection. Her ego was bruised six ways to Sunday when he finally let her have a break.

"Not bad for your first lesson," a weak smile lit her face as she panted for breath that had become a luxury about a half hour ago. "But," her breath hissed out at him, causing him merely to grin with abandon. "But you still need work."

"Duh." This time she couldn't help the snippy remark, but they both smiled at the progress she had made, knowing that if Medb tried this again, she would at least only come out of it with bruises.

"Your Highness…?" The voice seemed very distant and Jareth disappeared from in front of her. Until that moment, Sarah had forgotten that they had been in a dream and were, in fact, asleep. Her eyes snapped open and spotted Blix across the room, looking a bit distressed as he gazed at her. "Are you okay, Lady Sarah?"

She scanned her arms and saw the bruises along them from when she'd fallen in the course of protecting herself from Jareth's ruthless teachings. Sarah didn't need to SEE her ass to know that it would have a few battle wounds of its own to deal with over the next few days. Grimacing as she sat up on the couch, she lifted a hand of reassurance to Blix.

"Don't worry yourself, I'm fine." The goblin who had seen to so much for her still looked worried for her. "Just some rough training that needed to be done. I'm hearty, don't worry, I will be better in no time." That seemed to reassure him enough to have him turning back to Jareth, who had stood patiently awaiting why they had been interrupted.

"You have your meeting, sire," the goblin said as he bowed slightly to Jareth. Sarah couldn't understand the need for the constant bowing, but Jareth didn't seem to even notice it, so she passed it off as something that was simply…done.

"Yes, I will be with the council in a moment." That was Blix's dismissal and he knew it. Years of service to Jareth had trained the goblin well. "Sarah, I have to go, but I want you to keep thinking over what I taught you here. It will help you if-" she lifted her hand to his lips with a smile.

"Yes daddy." Her sarcasm earned her a perturbed scowl, but he leaned down and kissed her anyways.

"You are an eternal pain, surely you know that?" Sarah laughed as she sat back down on the couch, perusing the books Jareth had placed there.

"Of course I do, darling," she cooed, turning her eyes back to his with mischief dancing in them. "But," she paused for the dramatic impact and to let him scowl at her so adorably again, "if I were any different, you wouldn't love me." He pondered that a moment before nodding.

"True. I will be back in an hour. Don't get into too much trouble." She bit her tongue, knowing he had to go. They could keep up their sarcastic tirades all day, but not now.

"I promise." And she did, she thought as he left her to the books before her. They all seemed to blend together in a haze of dust jackets and yellowed pages. Each filled with the history of the land around her, something she promised herself that she would learn…eventually.

She had to learn it, she knew that. She couldn't very well be the queen of something that she knew absolutely nothing about no could she? As much as the thought of it bored her to salty, salty tears, she would learn about the kings of the past and what they had contributed to the kingdom she would be helping with.

It made her really think though, would she be in one of these books one day? Would some future queen somewhere down the millennia read about her? What would she read? Sarah hoped with all her heart that it would be a great tale of how Medb was conquered once and for all, never to torment the innocent of the Underground again.

She let her thoughts drift as she picked up another book entitled 'Great Deeds of Great Fiends'. After reading a few pages, she realized that it wasn't the kind of book she'd thought it would be. This was a book on practical jokers that had terrorized the courts with their antics over the years. Somewhere around page two-hundred and thirteen, Sarah found something that made her whole body perk up in a smile.

"Now that would be fun to use against dear old Medb."

**Patience** was far from being one of his virtues and especially not when he was angry and confused beyond all belief. What was Jeaule up to? She had traded something for possession of him, but what? And gods, why did he care!? Medb had basically sold him. It wasn't much of an act that he had put on in front of her, he was pissed that he'd been bartered for like an object.

How the hell did Medb even have the right to do something like that…? He wasn't her property. Perhaps he was in her eyes, simply a commodity that could be traded like a pretty piece of bangle jewelry. His eyes clenched shut at the thought of how he had appeared just that in all the time he had spent with her.

He had been nothing more than another adornment for Medb, he knew that now, but why was Jeaule doing that? It all stemmed from that happened at that party. When she had run from that room, something had changed. When he'd talked to her earlier, she's seemed upset, like she was about to cry just from seeing him.

What the hell had happened?

And why the hell was it causing her to make deals with Medb? He didn't know, but he was damn sure going to find out. The most confusing and, truthfully, infuriating part of the whole situation was the fact that he didn't know if he should be mad about what had happened. He loved Jeaule, didn't he?

Yes.

So why was he so mad that Medb had promised him to her? He should be rejoicing that she wasn't going to kill him and instead he was sitting here pouting and all because he felt so completely out of the loop. Cyric would just have to make sure that he was brought up to speed. He only had to wait for her mag-.

The cool spring breeze that smelled of jasmine and vanilla swept over his senses. It was her, her magic, she was finally answering him. He could feel the tentativeness and the worry staining the pure feel of her magic. Good, he thought, perhaps a bit insensitively, at least she feels bad. The communication crystal appeared with a wave of his hand.

"Are you finally alone?" He knew that his voice held irritation in spades, but that's exactly what he was…on so many levels. Her eyes dropped from his, worry draining her cheeks of even its natural rosy tone.

"Yes," she muttered. It was obvious that the poor thing had no idea of how to deal with him. Her eyes pleaded with his even as they avoided his gaze. It confused and aggravated him all the more.

"So, you bartered for ownership of me did you?" Even as he spoke at her with his harsh tone and his cold words, his mind berated him for being so callous and not simply asking her what was going on.

"I had to, it's all a part of my plan. I-"

"I am sick to death about hearing of plans." He bit off her words, didn't notice the tear slip down her cheek. "If you can't trust me with what is going on then…" his voice trailed off, unsure of what was coming next. "I don't know." He watched the sad face of the woman he loved nod slowly, this time saw the tear slip from her tawny eyes.

"I understand why you are upset, I would be too if I were in your place." One small, but elegant hand came up and wiped the tears from her eyes. "I wanted to tell you earlier about all that has happened, but my sister walked in."

"So what?" He didn't care any more if people knew that they were in love, least of all her own sister.

"She is the worst, I will tell you, are you able to come to me?" Need stirred in him, not only for her, but for knowing that she wanted to tell him. She wanted him to know what was going on, she needed him.

"Yes, I'll come now." Another tear slipped down her cheek, but this one, he knew, was happy because he was coming…and that he wasn't acting the tyrant anymore. He teleported to her room, knowing it well now. The Spartan décor was charming in its simplicity. His favorite part though was the simple charm of the single pink Labyrinthine rose in a slender white vase. The bed was even uncomplicated, he thought with a smile as he glanced at the small double bed.

Not even queen sized. Not his Jeaule, she would be practical. She didn't need something that big for just herself. The sheets were drawn over it perfectly, not a wrinkle to be seen. He wondered shortly if she did it because she liked everything this way or if it had just been drilled into her all her life that she wasn't worth beauty, elegance and a little extravagance.

She was.

"So," he started, already calmed slightly now that he was in her presence. The worry etched on her face made the guilt swim to the surface of his emotions. He really should have trusted her and not blown up at her, but he couldn't go back in time. Hopefully, she would forgive his stupidity. "What's going on Jeaule?"

He watched, stuck between amusement and intrigue, as she composed herself into the prim and proper Jeaule he'd first met, pleased that the fire was still in her eyes. That's what beguiled him the most about her, he had to admit that. Her ability to have this burning passion within herself that seemed to all but scream to get out at times and the other side of her, the docile little mouse that was content to sit and draw for hours.

She was a wonderfully complicated woman that he couldn't wait to spend all his time with, if simply to watch the different emotions swim over her face while her body and movements remained calm and composed. He knew that once they were free of the confines of secrecy, he would have fun goading her in public just to see if he could get that captivating proper shell of hers to break.

"Cyric…?" Her voice broke through his thoughts, she was sitting on the edge of her bed, hands folded in her lap, brows raised in question at his mental absence.

And he'd be damned if he didn't say that the desire coiled in his belly in a flash.

Cyric sat next to her on the bed, careful not to touch her, lest he desire more than she was willing to give yet. But, by the gods that would be difficult if her scent kept caressing him like that. He knew the touch of her skin now and couldn't help thinking if the rest of her was as soft and tempting. He knew the taste of her now, the sweet honey of it, and wondered if the rest of her was as delightful a feast.

"You really aren't here are you?" Her voice was light and teasing as he focused on her face again.

"I'm sorry, can I do one thing so I can get it off my mind?" His voice was low and almost desperate, something he'd never been in his life and it humbled him that she brought that out. Her eyes narrowed slightly in question as she bit her lip.

"Depends on what you want to do." He smiled slowly and brought her hand to his lips, kissing her fingers gently.

"I would never ask something of you that you weren't willing to give yet Jeaule." His thumb rubbed softly over her knuckles as he leaned towards her. "I merely wanted another kiss." His lips brushed her cheek, a mere whisper of contact. "I can't stop thinking of the last one."

He felt her skin heat under his lips and smiled, bringing his hands to her face. Her eyes caught his, desire and a little nervousness mixing enticingly in their tawny depths. As his lips touched hers he was stunned that it packed as much punch as the first time he'd kissed her. Would it always be like this with her? Would there always be this stunning blow of sweet desire every time he touched her?

Gods, he hoped so.

He pulled back from her, reluctantly admitting that if he didn't stop, the bed would be too great a convenience. Hands had to be placed on eager shoulders as she tried to lean forward for another kiss. With a shaky laugh, Cyric ran a hand through his hair.

"Love, if you don't stop now, I'm going to do thing to you that you make you blush all over." When she did just that at the thought, he couldn't help but pull her close for one more kiss. "Ok," he stated, pulling back and promising himself not to lean in again, "now that I have absolutely no blood left in my head, why don't you tell me what's going on?" Her smile was one of a woman who was pleased she was learning her power over him.

He loved it.

As she told him what had happened since she'd run from the party, it took every bit of control he had not to run from the room and throttle that little bitch she had the displeasure of calling a sister. Medb was no better, taking Jeaule on like that when it was plain the girl cared nothing for her plans, only for her sister…a nice credit to Jeaule's acting abilities.

"I guess I might have messed things up a little with my fit, huh?" Her smile was devious as she shook her head.

"Actually, I'm quite glad you are such a bonehead," she laughed as she kissed his cheek and stood to cross the room. "Because you are, it got me what I ultimately wanted from Medb without even having to ask for it." His brow knit as he watched her glide across the room. When she opened her desk drawer and pulled out the frosted pink bottle, he jumped up from his seat, not needing her to tell him what it was.

"She just GAVE it to you?" He snapped his fingers, "Like that?" Jeaule nodded again, a bit mystified, but completely pleased. Cyric crossed the room to her and pulled her off her feet into a spinning hug. "You amazing, wonderful girl!" His lips melded to hers again as she laughed under them.

"Calm down you," she teased as she slid from his arms. "I still have to go see Sarah and Jareth about everything that happened. My sister wouldn't shut up when we got home." Jeaule rolled her eyes, much to his delight. "I want you to come with me, we can call the healer in there to fix you up." He brought her hand to his lips again, brushing over them lightly and smiling at her.

"I will never be able to thank you enough." Her eyes lit as she gripped his hand in hers.

"You will have quite a long time to try."

"I love you, Jeaule." He was shocked as the words came from his mouth, but didn't retract them, merely soaked the meaning in. He truly loved this girl. His strange Jeaule who seemed so many different people rolled into one.

His Jeaule.

Her eyes didn't well with tears as many other girls might have, but they shone with a golden brilliance that dazzled him. "I love you too, Cyric." Neither would have thought that somewhere, there was a goddess wondering why the hell they could say it so easily and two others danced around it in intricate circles.

**Morrigan** had had it about up to her eyeballs with these two. Jareth and Sarah had professed their love to one another, made love like it was going out of style and got bored and pouty if not in each others company. Why couldn't they simply say the WORDS that they needed to?

Because that would be to easy, Morrigan thought with an aggravated sigh as she ran an agitated hand through her fire gold hair.

She watched as Jeaule and Cyric…now there were two beings who could fall into line with destiny…went to see Sarah and Jareth. The potion bottle in the girl's hand made Morrigan smile. If there had been a way for her to give it to them herself, she would have done so long ago. The two had been destined for each other long ago.

So different and yet so perfectly suited to each other.

They were Sarah and Jareth's mirror and were supposed to be examples for the two stubborn idiots. Still though, as Jeaule and Cyric sat there and the healer did his job, the two dunderheads seemed non-pulsed by their ardor for each other. It was wonderful to see Jeaule wrap her arms around Cyric as the healer proclaimed him officially cured of the potion.

"Don't you ever get tired of spying on others, my love?" Dagda came up from behind her, attempting to pull her attention from the orb that had held it captive for over a month now. He was tired of sharing his wife with the lives of these people. "This is worse than one of those soap operas that human housewives get so addicted to." It pleased him when his wife's fiery temper turned on him. He adored seeing her so worked up, it was like a great lioness in a kitten's body.

"This is a bit more important than those silly things." She didn't want to admit that from time to time, she liked to watch in on those too, as ridiculous as they were. Though, she wouldn't have had to, he knew.

"I know that you are worried for them darling, but you have to trust them." His smile was infectious and he knew it. Wrapping his arm around his wife, he almost got her away from the orb when something caught her attention.

"I think it's time to give Medb a little of her own medicine." It had been the girl, Sarah's voice and it had sounded as mischievous as it had lethal. Steeling his grip on his wife's shoulder, he walked her away from the orb, silently wishing them all the luck he could offer.

**(A/N: OMG…long chapter!! Longest ever, by a LONG shot, but oooooh so much frickin' fun to write!!! I hope you all enjoyed the intricate goodness and lovely bits. I love you all and thank you for making this story even more fun for me. I hit over 100k words for this one now…party time again!**

**REMEMBER…Reviews are like a drug to me…I LIVE for them! **

**No Jeaule diary this week…didn't think it really needed it.**

**Those who are DEFINITELY invited to the 100k word bash are those who reviewed last week and brightened my days! ****BattleofEvermore**** (I am waiting for them to say it too for god's sake!), ****BookwormBrea****- (Always love how adamant your reviews are!), ****darklady26****- (You know as always that you are a HUGE inspiration for this story, much love always hun!), ****harleyteen****- (Lovely to have you back and reviewing!), ****notwritten, saz89****- (I am so beyond adoration for you because you love and understand my Jeaule as much as you do!), ****The Banshee's Tears****- (I know…I am so mean with the cliffhangers. Not so much of one in this chapter though, hope that helped!)**

**Love to all my readers!)**


	22. Planning the Prank

**Disclaimer:**** This is going to be a VERY short chapter because this week has been NUTS with friends in need crashing at my place. So I haven't had any time to write. This story will commence with normal long chapters next week and new chapters will, from now on, be posted on Saturdays. Hope you can all forgive the briefness of the entry this week, love you all!!**

**Sarah** sat in the middle of their new bed hunched over the aged book where her Machiavellian plan had hatched, muttering the incantations to herself. Jareth was lounging on the sofa, seemingly disinterested in Sarah's plot, but inside he was very much looking forward to when she would tell him exactly what she was planning. Jeaule, on the other hand, seemed very distraught about the whole thing.

She paced restlessly by the bed, waiting for Sarah to tell her what she was planning as Jareth watched her with ill concealed amusement, "Do sit down, you are making me tired just watching you." Her tawny eyes turned to his as she bit her lip anxiously.

"I don't have much time before Erina will find out that I am gone and start looking for me." Jareth just waved his hand and motioned to the chair next to him.

"And Sarah can simply say that she called for you," his voice took on an edge of his normal irritability that caused her to sit herself down though her eyes stayed on Sarah's hunched form, "so stop fretting." He laced his arms behind his head again. "Sarah will tell us about it when she is ready to." His words were one thing, but he was just as anxious as Jeaule was. The girl simply had to learn not to let others see it.

He watched Jeaule wring her hands during the next quiet minutes, trying to keep his thoughts off of his devious darling working plans on their bed. Jareth couldn't help but wonder at how truly intricate her plan would be? Would it be something that would have Medb's head reeling when she tried to figure out what happened? Or would it be quite straight forward and in her face?

"Okay, come here." Sarah's voice broke his thoughts and he noticed that Jeaule was across the room before he had barely stood up. His lips quirked at their eccentric friend.

"You're sure the eager one aren't you?" Jeaule blushed slightly, but her smile was a mile wide.

"Yes, I nearly passed out I wanted to know so badly." Sarah bit her lip as she looked up at her friend.

"You might not be so eager to know once I tell you…" Jeaule's face dropped as she realized what that meant, she would have a part in this.

"Oh just tell me." It was nice to all but watch Jeaule grow a backbone over the past weeks and he smiled as she ran an apprehensive hand through her platinum hair.

"Well, the plan is to enchant a piece of cloth to invisibility and through some use of…certain pheromones," he loved how Sarah grazed over the pheromones part, inducing no questions from her curious friend. Not yet anyways, "to cause her to be swarmed." Jeaule's brow furrowed at that.

"Swarmed…?" She crawled up on the bed next to Sarah to peer at the book. "By what?" Jareth couldn't help but notice the glorious beauty of them sitting next to one another. They were so different, but both so beautiful in their own ways. It was like watching poetry come to life to see their hair contrast off the other, pearl white strands of starlight next to the velvet black darkness of the night sky.

"By something called a Whidle," she answered with a knowing grin. Jareth burst out laughing while Jeaule looked horrified.

"Oh Sarah," he called out between his chuckles, "you are deliciously evil at times!" And it was true. A Whidle was, Jareth assumed, much like an Aboveground hornet or wasp and far more painful to be stung by. While the swarm wouldn't kill Medb thanks to her immortal status, it would certainly leave her in a fair amount of pain for at least a week.

"Yes, now as to how to get it to her," Sarah trailed off and turned her gaze to Jeaule who put her hands up in protest.

"Oh no, no, no," Jeaule started as she backed off the bed, shaking her head and refusing to look her friend in the eye. Sarah gripped her hand and pulled her halfway back on the bed. "I'm not getting in trouble for this, I JUST got into her favor!" Sarah's smile made the hair on Jareth's neck stand up…in a good way.

"If we play this right it won't be you who gets in trouble." Jeaule stopped at that and caught Sarah's eyes, trepidation still in hers.

"Who will?" Again Sarah's smile was wicked enough to cause his skin to prick and he couldn't wait for Jeaule to leave on her task to show Sarah just how much he liked this side of her as well.

"Erina." Jeaule's smile matched Sarah's as her arm was freed, her tawny eyes sparkling with mischief.

"Now THAT sounds fun."

**(A/N: I know…I told you it would be short. I promise, promise, PROMISE that next week will be back to the nice, long chapters and again, I am truly sorry for the brevity of this chapter!**

**Those who made last week a joy with their reviews were: ****darklady26**** (I am so sorry that I haven't been around lately, like I said, crazy time this week with people in my home. I will email you!), ****harleyteen**** (glad you like my OC's, makes me smile.), ****Kerichi**** (I'm so writing the 'Reasons to Kill the Crossbreed' one shot!), ****Miss.Mad.Hatter99**** (Yay, new reader! Thanks for the support!), ****notwritten, saz89**** (Faints from the love oozing from you Seriously, you are like the sweetest thing ever and I always hope that my chapters please you! Much love!), ****The Banshee's Tears.)**


	23. A Well Played Prank

**Disclaimer:**** I have morphed the last chapter into the beginning of this one and rewritten it a lot, so please don't skip the beginning! I don't own right to the characters and/or settings they are found in that the original author and/or the movie created. I do not earn any money from this either, save for the sweetness of reviews from my wonderful readers!**

**Twirling **the translucent crystal orbs through slender fingers wasn't distracting him as completely as Jareth might have hoped. No matter what he tried, Sarah was still sitting in the middle of their new bed hunched over the aged book where her Machiavellian plan had hatched, muttering the incantations to herself and teasing him with her silence. Jareth forced himself to lounge on the sofa, seemingly disinterested in Sarah's plot, but inside he was in strained agony waiting for the time when she would tell him exactly what she was planning. Jeaule, on the other hand, seemed very distraught about the whole thing.

She paced restlessly by the bed, waiting for Sarah to tell her what she was planning as Jareth watched her with ill concealed amusement, "Do sit down, you are making me tired just watching you." Her tawny eyes turned to his as she bit her lip anxiously.

"I don't have much time before Erina will find out that I am gone and start looking for me." Jareth simply waved his hand airily and motioned to the chair next to him.

"And Sarah can simply say that she called for you," his voice took on an edge of his normal irritability that caused her to sit herself down though her eyes stayed on Sarah's hunched form, "so stop fretting." He laced his arms behind his head, crystals forgotten in the new amusement of distracting Jeaule. "Sarah will tell us about it when she is ready to." His words were one thing, but he was just as anxious as Jeaule was. The girl simply had to learn not to let others see it.

He watched Jeaule wring her hands during the next quiet minutes, trying to keep his thoughts off of his devious darling working plans on their bed. Jareth couldn't help but wonder at how truly intricate her plan would be? Would it be something that would have Medb's head reeling when she tried to figure out what happened? Or would it be quite straight forward and in her face? Knowing Sarah it would be a little of both, something so straight forward that it confused Medb.

"Okay, come here." Sarah's voice broke his thoughts and he noticed that Jeaule was across the room before he had barely stood up. His lips quirked at their eccentric friend.

"You're sure the eager one aren't you?" Jeaule blushed slightly, but her smile was a mile wide.

"Yes, I nearly passed out I wanted to know so badly." Sarah nipped at her lip as she looked up at her friend.

"You might not be so eager to know once I tell you…" Jeaule's face dropped as she realized what that meant, she would have a part in this.

"Oh just tell me." It was nice to have all but watched Jeaule grow a backbone over the past weeks and he smiled as she ran an apprehensive hand through her platinum hair.

"Well, the plan is to enchant a piece of cloth to invisibility and through some use of…certain pheromones," he loved how Sarah grazed over the pheromones part, inducing no questions from her curious friend. Not yet anyways, "to cause her to be swarmed." Jeaule's brow furrowed at that.

"Swarmed…?" She crawled up on the bed next to Sarah to peer at the book. "By what?" Jareth couldn't help but notice the glorious beauty of them sitting next to one another. They were so different, but both so beautiful in their own ways. It was like watching poetry come to life to see their hair contrast off the other, pearl white strands of starlight next to the velvet black darkness of the night sky.

"By something called a Whidle," she answered with a knowing grin. Jareth burst out laughing while Jeaule looked horrified.

"Oh Sarah," he called out between his chuckles, "you are deliciously evil at times!" And it was true. A Whidle was, Jareth assumed, much like an Aboveground hornet or wasp and far more painful to be stung by. While the swarm wouldn't kill Medb thanks to her immortal status, it would certainly leave her in a fair amount of pain and disfigurement for at least a week.

"Yes, now as to how to get it to her," Sarah trailed off and turned her gaze to Jeaule who put her hands up in protest.

"Oh no, no, no," Jeaule started, wide eyed, as she backed off the bed, shaking her head and refusing to look her friend in the eye. Sarah gripped her hand and pulled her halfway back on the bed. "I'm not getting in trouble for this, I JUST got into her favor!" Sarah's smile made the hair on Jareth's neck stand up…in a good way.

"If we play this right it won't be you who gets in trouble." Jeaule stopped at that and caught Sarah's eyes, trepidation still in hers.

"Who will?" Again Sarah's smile was wicked enough to cause his skin to prick and he couldn't wait for Jeaule to leave on her task to show Sarah just how much he liked this side of her as well.

"Erina." Jeaule's smile matched Sarah's as her arm was freed, her tawny eyes sparkling with mischief.

"Now THAT sounds fun." Feminine giggles filled the air around him and he was surprised to find out that he wasn't as annoyed with it as he had once been. Perhaps this was just another aspect of being in love…putting up with the opposite sexes annoying habits.

"It does sound interesting, love, but please enlighten me as to how exactly you think this is going to happen." Sarah rattled off her plan and Jareth was pleased to see that she had thought things through, save for one small detail. One that could have Jeaule killed if it didn't happen. "And how, may I ask, were you planning on implementing Erina instead of Jeaule…?"

The giggles died as the two stared at him, one tawny gaze filled with worry again, the other emerald gaze dumbfounded that she'd forgotten such an important piece of her intricate little puzzle.

"I-" Sarah started and then faltered. Jareth felt the corner of his lip twitch up, quite on its own he was sure.

"Perhaps make sure that Jeaule has no pheromone on herself, but let a bit onto Erina…most appropriately her hand." Jeaule grinned at his plan and Sarah pouted that she hadn't thought of it first.

"Fine, you have a…hand…in my plan now." The three continued talking of the plan, refining it until they were sure there was nothing that had been overlooked. Jeaule had even added in that she would need something to protect her hands from the pheromone, but then whatever that was would have to be completely disposed of.

It was another integral part of the plan that had Cyric coming in for more than a supplying of the pheromone roll. Once the plan was solid, Jeaule went off to her room to contact Cyric about getting the pheromones as the Whidle's territory was mostly on his land. When she was gone, Jareth turned to Sarah, wanting to wrap her in his arms and make love to her, but she was pale white.

"What in the Underground is wrong with you?" Sarah held up her hand in a dismissive gesture.

"It's nothing, the healer said that I would feel sick after what happened with Medb." Jareth frowned and paced slowly in front of the bed, he had never been good with dealing with sickness.

"One day, I'm sure. No more than that." This time it was his Sarah that frowned as she gripped at her churning stomach.

"Oh don't worry over it, I am probably just a little sick." His pacing stopped.

"You are Fae, we don't get sick often." Humor lit her eyes as she gazed up at him.

"Perhaps all the human hasn't been beaten out of me just yet," she said on a chuckle.

"No…it has." He mustered up a smile, sure that would make her feel better than him scowling at her.

"Oh…well I guess this is my once in a century sickness then." When he still did not relax she scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Oh will you just not worry over it?" His head nodded, but he knew that he wouldn't stop worrying about it until the color returned to her face.

**Jeaule** ran up to her room as fast as she could and thrust her magic out to Cyric, praying to the gods that he would be available to talk to her. When the warm touch of his magic brushed over her she all but shrieked with delight as the communication crystal popped up before her.

"Wow, someone is happy." Cyric's voice filled her ears and only proved to make the morning all the better for hearing him. "What's happened? Have I managed to impregnate you with my super baby without having touched you?" Her laughter was rich and full as she shook her head.

"Sadly to say, no my love." He had the audacity to look upset over the loss of the would-be super baby. "You're such a pain." His smile was…brilliant was the only word that came to mind.

"You chose me." A girlish giggle escaped her lips before she remembered her intention of calling him.

"Will you hush a moment so I can tell you what I needed to?"

"Of course, now that my hopes of the super baby are crushed…I have nothing more to say." She fought not to smile as she shook her head as she would at a child, but failed miserably. Once she regained some semblance of poise, she told him of the plan that Sarah had concocted.

"So it will really be up to us to pull this off?" She nodded, hoping that he would help. When the smile spread over his face, slow and malicious, Jeaule knew that he was on board. "This whole plan is just beyond funny as hell. I'm in."

"Oh thank the gods," she exclaimed on an exhale. His brow quirked at her response.

"What you thought I would leave you to do this all by your lonesome?" She blushed as she realized how that must have sounded. "I love it when you do that, but no…there is no way I would let you take all the credit for this one. And at least this way, if something goes down…I can take the fall for you." Her breath hitched on a gasp at that.

"You wouldn't!?"

"Oh wouldn't I?" He smiled at her again, a lopsided grin. "If there is any way I can protect you from now on, Jeaule, believe me I will." Jeaule smiled down at his face in the crystal, though she wasn't completely comfortable with the plan now. She hadn't thought of the fact that he might get in trouble. But she knew that arguing with the man would prove impossible so kept her mouth shut save for to tell him that they needed him to supply the pheromone.

"The Whidle's nesting grounds border yours and Medb's lands." He nodded, thinking a moment on how best to get that done today.

"Ok, teleport to The Whidle Lounge…you know where that is?" Jeaule nodded and he continued. "Ok good, teleport there at dusk and then, from the main door, walk almost a mile…straight to your right. There is a clearing there with a little stream. I will be there waiting with the pheromone." They said their 'I love you's' rather quickly as Jeaule felt her sister approaching. The communication crystal was broken before her sister entered the room anger only lightly etched on her features.

"Where the hell have you been?" Jeaule pulled her hair back, tying it up as she walked past her sister without a word to work through her day until she would meet with Cyric.

When the rosy colors of dusk touched her skin that evening, Jeaule stood and turned to her sister.

"I am going to my room, goodnight." Erina, who Jeaule had made sure had seen more than enough of her today, gave no more than a wave of her hand as a goodnight before going back to her book. Jeaule nearly ran to her room, locking the door behind her.

Jeaule had to gather the things she would need for the trip. It was simple enough to do for it was only two things, gloves she had spelled to be stain and water proof a year before for work around the castle. Maesia always wanted the two girls to look beautiful and presentable, but she never let them shirk off their duties, so the gloves had come in handy many times. The only other thing she needed to grab was the little velvet bag she had spelled that afternoon.

It would be sealed with magic so that not even the scent of the pheromone could seep through the top once the bottle was opened. Once she had the velvet bag tied to the belt around her waist, she teleported herself to The Whidle Lounge.

It wasn't the most reputable of bars, its patron's roaming in from near and far, there was always sure to be gypsies inside its mahogany walls ready to pick your pocket. She gave the front door but a glance before turning to her right and starting a brisk walk into the woods, pleased that no one had seen her.

The scenery was pretty, if not a bit monotonous so she amused herself with thoughts during her walk. Cyric's lands were beautiful indeed, she had visited once a few decades ago during a gathering celebrating his father's 200th anniversary on the throne. Maesia had brought her along as her Lady's Maid. Jeaule had to admit that it was then that she had really fallen into a girlish crush with her Cyric.

He'd looked so dazzling, sitting next to his father in those deep burgundy dress clothes. The color had made his hair seem like a waterfall of chocolate waves around the regal curve of his face, trickling down to brush over the soft material. And his eyes…oh his eyes, they had locked upon her but once that evening, but that once had been enough to lose herself to.

And how she had…she thought with a smirk of understanding.

Never had she linked that moment with what had turned into the bane of Maesia's life…trying to find her a partner. Poor Maesia had tried, she had pranced some very eligible, very rich, very gorgeous men before her, but none of them appealed to her. Maesia had begun to fear that she would never marry, never have that bond with someone.

But she'd found it.

"Beautiful women should not roam these forests unattended." The voice was at her ear. Damn her for not paying more attention to her surroundings in gypsy infested lands. There were lips on her neck, kissing slowly, thoroughly. Why wasn't she moving? When she felt the hair brush over her skin, she knew.

"Damn it Cyric!" His laughter made it impossible for her to remain mad at him.

"What…? You didn't know it was me?" She turned and smacked his arm for impudence. "And you didn't move…I'm crushed."

"Oh you…who else could it have been?" Jeaule desperately tried to claim some grounds that she had known, but his arms snaked around her and he bent down to lay his lips to hers.

"It could have been a big, bad Gypsy come to steal you away from me forever." It was amazing how his lips could cause every rational thought to flee her head.

"Oh honestly…" She felt something cold that felt like glass slide into her hand. "What…?"

"The pheromone." She giggled as he once again placed kisses along her neck.

"Are you sure you got the right species?" Cyric turned her around and pulled her into his arms in one of his sudden changes of attitude.

"Please be careful Jeaule." His words were strong, but his voice held a shadow of the worry that he felt. "One wrong move with this one and everything will be ruined. Not just for Jareth and Sarah…" he drifted off, his arms tightening around her so her head rested against his shoulder.

"Don't worry, Cyric. I have you there to help me, how could it go wrong?" She pulled from his embrace with reluctance, placing the tiny glass bottle in the velvet bag tied to her belt. "I have to go back before Erina discovers that I am gone." He nodded, though she could tell that he didn't want her to go. "We will be together soon, love." She squeezed his hand, hoping it would give him some measure of security. Her gesture led him to one of his own. Cyric pulled her back into his arms, capturing her lips with all the passion and worry that he couldn't and wouldn't express with words. That was the impression he left her with as he backed away from her with one of his roguish smiles.

"Something to tide you over till you see me again tomorrow." The laughter couldn't be helped she was sure.

"Arrogant ass…" she teased before he bowed and disappeared in a shower of glitter. Her heart gave its customary tug at the loss of him, but she simply sighed and teleported herself back to her room. She placed the little velvet bag on her writing desk and fell back on her bed, asleep in minutes thanks to the stress of the day.

When her eyes again cracked open, the sight she saw wasn't nearly as pleasant as the last thing she'd thought of the night before. Backlit by the morning sun was her sister, with the velvet bag nestled in her hand. It was quite clear that she was trying to figure out how to gain access to the cerulean depths of the bag.

"What do you think you are doing?" Jeaule saw her sister jump ever so slightly at the sound of her voice. So she'd thought she was sleeping had she? Erina placed the bag back down on the writing desk, feigning indifference, though her eyes told a different story and she didn't turn to face Jeaule.

"Oh, I am just admiring the one bit of luxury you seem to have afforded yourself amongst the dreariness of this room." In an attempt to sell her point, Erina turned her nose up at the room she'd always liked spending more time in than her own until recently. "What is it anyways?" Jeaule tossed her sheets back and walked over to her closet, determined not to give Erina a reason to be interested in the contents of the velvet pouch.

"Why don't you ever just mind your own business?" She started shifting through her dresses, hoping it appeared she was simply trying to decide what to wear and not that her heart was beating a mile a minute. "Can you please leave while I get dressed?" Erina's brow arched delicately as she made her way back to the writing table.

"Why? You never cared if I was here before." Her fingers caressed over the soft material before picking it up again and, to Jeaule's horror, started tossing it in the air. "There's something in it…I can tell that much." Erina tossed it high in the air, almost touching the ceiling of Jeaule's room. "What is it?" Jeaule's stomach clenched as she imagined the pouch falling to the floor, its contents shattering Sarah's revenge. "I suppose I could merely…break it," she let the bag hang from her fingers by the tie strings. Jeaule knew that she had to get Erina's interest off the bag and she knew that the best way to do that with her sister was to pretend not to care.

"It's of little importance to me what you do to it…I could merely get more." It worked, Erina brought the bag back up into her hands, a small victory for Jeaule. Jeaule watched Erina eye the bag curiously as she dressed herself.

"Yeah…" Erina sounded more irritated now than vindictive and that was a good change. "But what is it?" Jeaule knew that she couldn't avoid answering her forever so she turned to her.

"It's only a potion that Healer Gorbe gave me for my ever constant headaches anymore. He told me to keep it spelled shut so that no one else takes the medication. It's quite potent." Erina looked a bit skeptical, but she appeared to be buying the story and the bag was still safely in her hand and not in the air.

"Why are you having headaches? You never had them before." Jeaule turned to face her sister's cold blue eyes. It was sickening how it just seemed like there was no life in them anymore. Like the wickedness that was eating at her had devoured her very soul.

"I never had to play spy before. I never had to lie before or be blackmailed by my own sister before. You have driven me to constant stress." Jeaule's emotions were getting the better of her, but she couldn't seem to stop it. "The stress always leads to the headaches Erina, that's why I have them. If you would kindly put down my medicine, I would be much obliged." Erina pursed her lips in annoyance and let the bag drop, none to delicately, on the table she found it on. Her arms crossed in front of her as she glared angrily at her sister.

"You know…you have become far too touchy lately. I think the old Jeaule was much more fun." That was it, Jeaule had taken far too much of this crap lately and it was time that her sister got a little of her own back.

"You only say that because the old Jeaule listened to everything you said and did everything you told her to!" The smile that crossed Erina's face was so self important, Jeaule wanted to smack it right off her face.

"Yes, well, that hasn't much changed now has it?" Jeaule's anger reached a boiling point. If she could have ripped that impudent little smirk from her sisters face, she would have.

"I wouldn't have a damn thing to do with what you are planning if you weren't blackmailing me." It was out before she could control her tongue, all she could do now was mentally bite it as she realized her slip. She wanted to die as she watched Erina's brow quirk up in interest.

"Oh really? I thought you wanted to keep me safe…?:

"I do…" Backpedaling was not something she had worked on and it was showing in her stuttering at the moment. Erina jumped on the opportunity like a tiger on a wounded gazelle.

"Or is this all for Cyric?" Honesty is the best policy, Jeaule decided to go with it.

"A part of it, yes." Erina's eyes were like pin pricks on her skin, looking for any sign of weakness. Jeaule knew that she was walking thin ice. "Erina, you are something so far from the sister I loved." Erina's back straightened in anger at the comment, but Jeaule pushed on, hoping that she could convince her sister. "But you are still my sister and I still care for you. I can only hope that if I help you with this and you get what you want…you will be what I loved again. I do this so I can get you back." When Erina smiled it was obvious that would never happen, no matter what happened.

"We shall see if that happens sister dear. But I warn you, don't make me doubt you, for I will sabotage you with Medb if you try to hinder my plans." Jeaule knew she wasn't kidding, but fought the smirk as she knew that was exactly what she planned to do today. With a careless wave and a steely look, Erina left the room telling her to be ready in thirty minutes. On a timer now, Jeaule teleported to Sarah and Jareth's room a few minutes before they had planned. Thankfully there was nothing going on that would have embarrassed her into a coma.

"You're early." Jareth sounded irritated, but then again…didn't he always?

"Sorry, I am on an Erina timer and I couldn't wait. I have to leave in less than half an hour." Sarah came out from the bathroom, the cloth spelled invisible in her hands. She crossed the room and placed the folded cloth, probably about the size of a handkerchief Jeaule assumed, in her hands.

"Be careful Jeaule." Sarah said as she hugged her friend. Jeaule would forever be grateful for the friend she had made in Sarah. Without her…rather brash human tendencies, she might never have become what she was today. For that she owed Sarah far more than the debt of friendship.

"I will be, don't worry yourself so." She put back on the gloves from the day before and turned to Jareth with a devilish smirk. "Do whatever you can to keep her mind off of what is going to happen today." His smile was equally wicked as his eyes caressed over his lover.

"I think I can handle that." She giggled before unlocking the bag tied to the belt of her dress and tucking the cloth inside its velvety depths. After Sarah drilled the plan into her head again, Jeaule headed back to Erina and they headed off to Medb's.

When they arrived, Medb wasn't ready to see them so they had to wait in her room. Jeaule silently cheered her good luck. It was exactly what she had hoped to accomplish by coming early. This was her chance to set up the prank, but she had to remain inconspicuous to Erina.

Jeaule crossed the room, inching herself nearer and nearer to the chair that Medb always sat in. As her eyes scanned over the navy blue suede of the plush armchair, she silently thanked the gods that Cyric was here enough to give them information like that. She pretended to be interested in the little knick knacks that littered the shelves behind the chair, picking up this, grazing her fingers over that.

When it appeared that Erina had no more care of her and was gazing out of Medb's window with a strange gleam in her eye, Jeaule took the moment to act. She brought the pheromone and cloth out from the little velvet purse and doused the cloth without a care to the gloves beneath it.

They would be eliminated soon anyways.

When the pheromone was gone from the bottle, Jeaule placed it back in the little pouch making sure to spell it sealed lest the little Whidle bastards catch the scent on her. Placing the cloth strategically in her hand, Jeaule made a motion over the chair that, to anyone watching would have appeared simply to be admiring the softness of the cushion. She was thankful that she'd masked her move, for Erina had been watching her at that point and rolled her eyes at Jeaule's seeming folly.

"Good morning ladies," Cyric's lazily elegant voice drifted through the air as he entered, a tray in hand. She loved a punctual man and he was here exactly where she'd wanted him to be. "May I take purses, gloves or anything else that might be encumbering to you during your stay?" He held out the tray to each in turn. "You will, of course, get them back before you leave." Erina was nearly ignoring him, good that gave Jeaule a reason to do what she'd hoped to be able to.

She crossed the room and took Erina's hand in her pheromone soaked gloved one, "Sister, is there anything you wish him to take for now?" Jeaule was shocked to be brushed off and told 'no of course not'. "Very well then." She turned from her sister, giving Cyric a wicked little grin as she stripped off her gloves carefully, from her forearm off, turning them inside out. Placing them on the tray with the little purse was exactly what had been planned. Instead of coming back to her at the end of this act, they would be incinerated, the only evidence disintegrated.

"You ladies have a pleasant day," he crooned as he left the room, one more 'be careful' glance thrown at Jeaule. Once she was alone with her sister again, she prayed to the gods that Medb wouldn't take too long or the Whidle's would be swarming an empty chair. Thankfully, she didn't take long at all and joined them but minutes after Cyric had left with the evidence of the crime she had just committed against her.

She sat right down in her chair, looking weary and irritated already. Good, Jeaule thought, then this would really piss her off.

"Right, so Erina, you tell me that you have a plan to discuss with me?" Interesting turn of events…Jeaule had thought that they were coming here to hear Medb's next idea. Well, this just got more and more interesting didn't it? Erina proceeded to actually tell Medb a censored version of her plans to drug Jareth with the potion, leaving out the part where she would steal him from Medb completely.

"I was thinking, if their bond was broken, it would make you taking him a lot easier." Medb was tapping a finger along her jaw, thinking over what Erina had just said when the first Whidle appeared.

"What on earth!?" she exclaimed, her hand reaching for the point of the sting, her bottom. To Jeaule's delight, her hand rubbed over the invisible cloth as she tried to find the damn thing and when she rubbed that hand over her face in relief when it was gone, she had to stuggle not to laugh. That's when the swarm started.

They flew in the windows and looked like a black cloud around Medb and delightfully, Erina. Jeaule ran to the opposite side of the room and huddled in a corner, not wishing to become dessert in the Whidle's feast. That was when, urged by the screams, several guards rushed in to help their mistress…followed closely by Cyric. They called for the deterrent and it was brought in spades. Jeaule giggled to herself as she realized that they planned to spray the two with it…the stuff smelled like week old garbage.

Once all the Whidle's were either dead or long gone, the sight that was left before them was horrific, disturbing and…amusing to a select few. Jeaule could see that Erina's hand had been stung significantly, but she was hiding that fact from Medb by hiding it behind her back.

And then there was Medb. Oh by the gods…

Her face was stung so many times that Jeaule had difficulty looking at the woman. She looked like a six foot tall dwarf, her features were so gnarled and swollen. It had to be terribly painful, your skin stretched like that. Not to mention the emotional pain the woman would go through when she saw her once beautiful face in a mirror. Deformed or not, the rage was quite apparent on her face.

"CYRIC!" Cyric ran to her side and Jeaule's stomach clenched. Surely she could not think that he did it? "What could have made those blasted things do something like this!?" She gave a mental sigh of relief as Cyric told her that someone might have brought a pheromone with them that attracted the Whidles. Medb glared over at Jeaule and Erina, plain fury in her icy blue eyes, the only recognizable part of her, which frightened Jeaule to the core. "Was it you!?" Medb pointed at Jeaule, causing her to jump in shock, only adding realism to her act, for she truly was frightened. "You just stepped into my favor and now did you do this!?" She started to advance over to Jeaule, who was so scared, she felt like she was going to pass out from the sheer fear coursing through her.

"No Your Grace…! I would nev…" Cyric crossed the room to Erina, eyes narrowed in suspicion as planned, and grabs her hand, showing Medb.

"If Jeaule did it…why isn't she stung while Erina is? And on her hand none the less." Erina's eyes lit with a dangerous flare as she ripped her engorged hand from Cyric's grasp.

"I didn't do it you idiot! Why would I?" But Medb, to Jeaule's relief had already taken in the very obvious fact that Erina was stung and Jeaule was not. In a sweep of her expansive skirts, she turned to cross to Erina.

"How did you do it?" How Erina had the courage for what she was about to do was beyond Jeaule, watching in horror as her sister's back steeled and her chin raised at Medb.

"I told you I didn't do anything!" The crack of Medb's hand as she slapped Erina hard across the face was like lightning cracking across the sky.

"You insolent little bitch! Tell me what you did!" Erina was crumpled on the floor, fear and tears replaced the pride in her eyes.

"I didn't…" Jeaule was shocked to discover that she doesn't feel the least bit sorry for the thing that her sister had turned into and stepped forward for the next part of the plan.

"Where did they start swarming first Your Highness?" Medb spun around to face her, her disfigured face causing Jeaule to fight the cringing reaction. "I know that it was traumatic, but if you can remember where they swarmed first then we might be able to find out where she placed the pheromone." Her face twisted further as she tried to think of where they swarmed her first, her hand resting on a very distended rump.

"There, they swarmed here first." Jeaule pretended to think on that, fingers at her chin. She looked around the room as if trying to solve this mystery placed before her. Letting her eyes rest on the chair a moment, she snapped her fingers.

"I need something long to inspect your chair and your clothing Your Grace." It was hard to tell from her limited facial expressions if she was shocked by the request, but she nodded and snapped at her guards with enlarged fingers. "I have to make sure the pheromone won't be transferred to anyone else. We don't need another swarm." That was the right thing to say, the worry of another attack clouded Medb's eyes.

Men came back with two long spoons from the kitchen. It would work, Jeaule thought as she pulled at Medb's skirts, careful not to hurt her swollen bottom. She was, after all, playing concerned lackey at the moment. Finding nothing, duh, on the skirts, Jeaule went to the chair where she 'discovered' the invisible towel on Medb's chair, to Erina's spitting denials as she is held by guards.

Cyric bagged it immediately, "I swear to you it will meet the incinerator right away." Medb bade him leave and he started too, which pleased Jeaule…good actor she thought, before she grabbed his sleeve to stop him.

"Good Cyric, do burn anything you might have taken from the two of us before Her Highness had shown up, in case there was pheromone on anything there." That was apparently enough for Erina who screamed at Jeaule.

"I gave Cyric nothing! Jeaule did!" Medb swirled on her, fed up with her whining.

"Shut up, you word means nothing to me anymore!" Cyric left with the invisible towel and two guards stayed to hold a hysterical Erina. Medb paced before the squirming woman, in obvious pain, as Jeaule watched on, wondering what she would do to her. "You are no longer allowed to come to this castle. Any and all information that you need for this plan will be given through your sister."

"I didn't do anything…the plan that I came up wi-" Medb smacked her again to silence her.

"I would hold your tongue as you are lucky I haven't ripped it from you." That seemed to do the trick and Erina shut up. "I should kill you right here and now, but unfortunately, I am not stupid enough to think that I can pull of this, admittedly good plan of yours, without you. If I kill you now, it will alert Jareth to who the spy in his home was and things will go into lockdown there. You must stay alive," Jeaule was a little shocked and disturbed to feel disappointment, "for now." While worry painted her face, inside, Jeaule mentally danced at the success of the prank.

**(A/N: Hope you all enjoyed the chapter as much as I did writing it. Thank you guys for being the best readers ever, much love. This chapter is being posted on Friday as opposed to Saturday like I had said because I won't be here tomorrow. So early chapter for you. **

**Those who made my week for their reviews on the last chapter were: angelbabe2000, BattleofEvermore, darklady26, Kerichi and notwritten!)**


	24. Erina's Deception Foiled

**Disclaimer:**** I own none of anything you recognize from the book or the movie. They belong to their respective owners, but most of this does, in fact, belong to me. Jeaule, Cyric, Medb, Erina, Maesia, etc and my own original plotline are very much mine. I earn no money for this, but I do get the pleasure of reviews from my readers, which are like shiny, shiny gold to me!**

**Distracting** herself from thinking about the thin like that Jeaule was teetering on the edge of at the moment proved to be quite a lot easier than she had imagined it would. Sarah sat on the very edge of seat cushioned wooden chair, staring out over the kingdom that wasn't really hers.

Yet, anyways.

All she seemed to be able to think of was the world she had left behind. Not a kingdom by any means of the word, but she did wonder what had happened to everyone when she left. Did they care? Had Jareth made them all forget her somehow? Would she rather it be that way if she had the choice? Answers to these questions didn't come as easily as she wished. Sarah wasn't sure how she felt about the family she had left behind, if you could call it that.

Though she was sure of one thing, she missed her little brother. So little had been said of the little boy who Jareth had taken from her that night. So little had been said about what she'd gone through to get him back. Was that right? Shouldn't she try to remember Toby and all she had done to save him? What she'd given up that night for him? Shouldn't she care?

And she did.

She knew she did, but in this world so unlike her own, thoughts of him seemed to drift from her mind when it appeared that her mind wanted to be dominated by Medb. It made her feel something near to guilt when he finally drilled his way back into the forefront of her memory.

"You could always see him Sarah." Jareth's voice startled her, causing her to jump enough that if his magic hadn't been quick, her bottom would have missed the chair completely and found hard company with the stone floors. Bottom miraculously on the cushion of the chair once more, she looked up into her loves eyes, eyes that had so frightened her that day in the Labyrinth. How had the change come about that they only intrigued and excited her now?

Perhaps it had always been there, she thought with a grin that confused Jareth. Perhaps what my adolescent mentality took for fear was really attraction? Sarah smiled again as she knew it had been at least a LITTLE attributed to fear itself, but not for her truly…for Toby.

"How could I see him," she finally asked in a dreamy sort of voice, almost as if she'd just woken up. Jareth ran his hands over her hair, eyes misted and lost in thought, mouth pursed as if he didn't like his idea, but knew he was going to do it anyways.

"I could take you to him." Sarah jumped at the idea with a fervor that shocked her.

"Really you could!?" Jareth raised his hands up in front of himself, urging her silently to calm herself.

"Yes, but only if he calls for you or is wondering what happened to you, that would suffice." Her lip pouted at the rules, but she understood them. "I can't just show up with you there and shock him. If he has accepted the fact that you are gone, then you have to let him have that solitude, that closure. But if he does wonder what happened to you, if he does wish to know where you are, then I can take you to him." Her heart softened even more towards him as she crossed the room and slid into his lap, his arms wrapping around her possessively.

"You are a good man." Jareth feigned a shiver of revulsion.

"Don't you dare tell a soul," he teased, pretending to preen his appearance, "it would ruin my reputation." She, on the other hand, couldn't keep up the act and laughed till she felt stitches in her side.

"Oh, I could always tell them that you are still an ass, it's just deep down, at rare times, you let the good man shine through." He brought a hand to his chin, pondering that thought for a moment.

"No, I think it's better to just hush the whole thing up."

"Oh very well." The jovial twinkle left his eyes when he met hers again. "What? What's wrong?" His eyes dropped from hers.

"I just wondered, why do you care what happens to any of them? I thought you wanted to leave?" She grinned at him, but didn't bring up the masked jealousy she heard in his voice.

"I did want to leave and I DO want to be with you. I wouldn't give it up for anything in either the Above or Underground." Pleased when the happiness returned to his eyes, she decided to give him more understanding of why she left. "Mostly, it was because of my stepmother. You know what she did to me, what she always did to me. It wasn't really her that hurt me though. I could always block her out, she was nothing to me, but my father," her voice choked on the word. "My father never stood up for me. He would always give Karen her way."

"Like the hospital," Jareth all but growled. Sarah shivered as she thought of it.

"Yes, like the hospital. I left because neither of them cared, but Toby…he is quite special to me." Jareth's laughter was unexpected after the chest rumbling growl of but moments ago.

"Indeed he would be." She pursed her lips at his cheekiness, but the smile couldn't hide.

"Well, I did have to go through quite a lot for him," she amended, hoping to stick up for herself. She should have known better.

"You did…but I didn't make it all that difficult for you either." Her mouth dropped open at that, dumbfounded and irritated.

"You're kidding me right? On several occasions I never thought I would get out. I thought I might die on that damned trip!" His continued loftiness only proved to make her feel laughed at and belittled.

"Oh really," he laughed, "I gave you far more help than you needed." Her pulse quickened at his words, why did he have to make what she went through seem like such a big grand joke? Well it wasn't to her.

"You tried to stop me at every turn!" Her growing anger was apparent now in her voice and it caused him to hold her more tightly. It was obvious in his eyes that he wasn't sure why she was so upset.

"Didn't you ever wonder why creatures of my own kingdom ended up helping you…even though I was this great, scary…feared king?" He was trying to tell her what she didn't want to hear. That, while Hoggle might have had good reason to fear him, his feelings for Sarah, none of the others had ever seemed all that truly frightened of him, but she had to hold to hope that she was wrong. Her smile was sarcastic and a bit taunting when she finally forced it to her face.

"I'd always thought it was because they wanted to see you beaten," she lied through her teeth. Jareth didn't seem to believe her, but he kept explaining…always explaining she thought. Why couldn't he have just been straight forward? Wouldn't that have been so much damned easier!?

"Sarah, did you ever wonder why they were never punished by anyone?" That caused her to falter, for she had wondered that, a lot actually, before they had taken her memories away from her at that awful place.

A flash of white room cames before her, nearly blinding her in its realness. Sarah could see the face of the doctor she was assigned to, not knowing or caring to remember a name. She was strapped, wrists and ankles, to the chair, but the child Sarah didn't seem to know it. This must have been somewhere in between her saneness, for the child she saw strapped in that chair wasn't her.

The child she saw trapped in that chair did indeed look crazed. And rightly so, Sarah thought with a fiery passion, they were ripping reality FROM me, not bringing it back. As she listened to the conversation, it seemed very familiar. That was what they were talking about, why were these people, creatures, things…whatever they may be…were never punished for what they had done, if they had in fact done it?

The doctor's blurred face turned to her, dark hair the only apparent and defining feature, and said the words that Jareth just had, "Don't you think it makes more sense that he'd wanted them to help you, that he hadn't wanted you harmed?" Sure an adult could wrap their minds around this situation, but Sarah watched as the girl laughed and threw down the option as ridiculous.

"Of course not!" This strange woman didn't know Jareth as she knew him. Jareth pulled her back to reality, a sad smile on his face.

"Turns out you didn't know me half as well as that woman in the white jacket." Sarah nodded, tears forming and falling over her cheeks at the frighteningly real memory, she could almost feel the straps on her wrists again, holding her to the chair to prevent an outburst.

Suddenly the door blew open without Blix's warning knock, swinging back and admitting a winded Jeaule.

"It worked!" Sarah jumped out of Jareth's lap, wiping the tears from her now excited eyes.

"Really!? Oh what I wouldn't give to be able to see the look on her face…to see her face!" Sarah giggled madly as she rushed to her friend and hugged her. "Everything went perfectly? She doesn't suspect you?" Jeaule's smile was infectious as Jareth joined them.

"Not at all!" Jeaule pulled back, the smile on her face probably could have lit the whole castle for a week. "She actually banned Erina from her lands. I am the only one allowed to see her anymore." Sarah's head reeled at the news. How could everything be going so well? It seemed almost too good to be true.

"So what else happened?" Jareth's cool voice cut through her doubt and she sat next to Jeaule on the couch, waving a careless hand to start a fire in lieu of the fading light outside. Jeaule sat, straight backed and proper as ever, but the look in her eyes was anything but.

"Erina told Medb that she has a plan and I fear that I know exactly what it is. She spoke to me of it before, when Medb gave me the potion." Sarah felt her inside clench at the possibilities. "And Medb gave her the go ahead to do it, so you need to be prepared. I don't know exactly what she plans to do, but she told me to meet her in her room tomorrow to start planning the details. She plans to use the potion on Jareth." Sarah jumped from her seat affronted while Jareth merely leaned back in the chair next to them looking thoroughly amused.

"She couldn't possibly think to get away with it!? I won't let her-"

"I won't let her do anything either Sarah," Jeaule cut in, placing a hand on hers to calm her. "You forget that I have possession of the potion not her. Whatever happens, we all have to play along with it. There is no way…no safe way…that we can actually drug Jareth with the love potion as Erina wants to." Sarah turned her gaze to Jareth, who still looked completely entertained by the whole idea. He leaned forward again and when Sarah thought that he was going to deny the plan on principle…as she would have…he shocked her.

"I, for one, think that this is the best way to get rid of Erina once and all. After all, if her plan doesn't work out in the end, I am sure that won't make Medb very happy. It would most likely be Erina's finale, sorry Jeaule." She raised a hand, shaking it lightly to deter the apology.

"No need to be sorry," she said a bit easily for Sarah's tastes. She must have noticed that Sarah looked uncomfortable with her ease at knowing her sister would most assuredly die. "Don't think that I am so cold hearted now that I wouldn't mourn my sister, Sarah. But I also know that she isn't truly my sister anymore. She is something quite different, twisted into her own hatred of you and her desire of Jareth. She won't come out of it, Sarah, no matter what we do. Her mind is lost to us." It was a hard lump for Sarah to swallow, but she did, knowing that everything Jeaule said was true. Erina was going to find her end.

Jeaule produced the tiny frosted pink bottle with an elegant twist of her hand and Sarah groaned, "Oh did you have to bring that here?" Her friend simply smiled and walked slowly across the room.

"I simply wanted to prove a point." Jareth turned to her, a bemused smirk on his face, as if he already knew what was going to happen.

"What point?" When her platinum hair caught the dying sunlight outside it erupted into a fiery orange halo of light around her head.

"That I don't intend to let anyone else be harmed by this potion." With that, she turned to the window and poured the potion outside, letting the tiny bottle drain of its contents. Sarah gasped at the gesture, which seemed quite pointless and stupid to her.

"What the hell are you going to do now if Erina wants to make sure it's working?" Jeaule looked at her, quite serious and crossed back to her.

"Erina will be told that she isn't allowed to use this on anyone but Jareth or I won't help her." Sarah was still unsure.

"But why would she listen to you?" Jeaule smirked as Jareth leaned over to Sarah who was starting to feel like the odd man out of this conversation.

"Because now that Erina has lost favor with Medb, she has lost control over Jeaule." It was like the light clicked on in her head. How could she have been so blind to it? Easy…she hadn't been around the Fae long enough to understand how their minds worked yet.

"Ok, so she will only be allowed to use it on Jareth, but what happens when it doesn't work?" They both knew that she didn't know much about potions so Jeaule let Jareth take the lead on explaining that one.

"I assume that I will be pretending to let the potion affect me correctly," when Sarah was about to contest that, he cut her off. "To a point, love…only to a point. You see it is proven that if someone is already in love, the potion only has a weakened effect."

"Cyric being an example," Jeaule added, taking the wheel. "So he doesn't have to do anything really disgusting with Erina, merely perhaps coo over her a little." She paused again, her eyes looking a bit fierce. "And I plan to have her gone far sooner than it would take for your 2 months to be over." Sarah had almost forgotten their time limit.

"How long do we have left?"

"Well, it started from when you first came back so you are at thirty seven days now. You have three weeks left before this is over…one way or another." Sarah sighed and slumped back against the chair.

"So little time." Her head was swimming with the thoughts she wouldn't express. So little time to be with Jareth should everything fall apart somehow. And they didn't even know how to assure that they were going to win as they didn't know the stakes. "So Erina's plan will fail before time is up?"

"Yes, but I want Medb thinking that it's working as long as possible. So I am planning to waste at least a week changing Erina's plans over and over until she gets upset. Then I will act on them," she finished, using air quotes on the word 'act'. Jareth leaned forward again, gaining the girl's attention.

"Hopefully we can waste about the same amount of time before letting her fall flat on her face." Jeaule nodded, a devious little grin on her face. Jareth laughed delightedly, Sarah joining in as she grew comfortable with the plan. She watched her love as he came to sit between then, wrapping an arm around the little blonde minx they were lucky enough to call a friend. "I am so happy you're on our side!"

**The** following week all but FLEW by Jeaule as she tricked her sister into thinking that everything was going to run smoothly. Cyric had even found time to come over and explain to Jareth exactly how it had felt to be conflicted under influence of the potion. It would help immensely when playing his part for Erina. This way he would know exactly how to act when both Erina and Jeaule were in the room. It was planned for that day that the two would be summoned together and Jeaule would be given her chance to 'drug' Jareth's afternoon tea.

When Blix came to Erina's door to tell them that they had been summoned, Jeaule wasn't sure she would be able to maintain composure, but somehow, she did. They entered the royal chambers to Jareth's perfectly executed confusion of why they were both there. Blix bowed as he had been told to.

"You wanted your tea and you also wanted things tidied since Lady Sarah is out in the gardens today." Jareth nodded his head in an 'oh yes' way and waved the two in. Erina got his attention and led him away from his tea, thinking her great plans were working well so far. Jeaule heard her silky tones trying to work on Jareth without benefit of the potion yet. She would have paid all the money in the Underground to hear the revulsion in Jareth's mind.

"So what do you want tidied today Your Majesty?" Erina cooed before looking back to make sure Jeaule was tipping the little bottle over the tea cup. She was indeed, but what Erina didn't know was that it was thinned honey that was leaving the bottle, not the love potion. She grinned with ill concealed triumph before leading Jareth back. "Perhaps you should have some tea while you tell me?"

"I will go take care of the bathroom Highness, I know what needs done in there." He rolled his eyes covertly at her as she passed, causing her to smile as she let Erina have the 'privacy' of him seeing only her after he 'drank the potion'. When she heard her sister giggle, she knew that the illusion had been set. Once she entered back into the room, she almost choked on her own saliva, hiding a laugh as a cough, when she saw what a good job he was doing.

His eyes were dreamily stupid in a way she hadn't even seen him look at Sarah. She was sure that look wasn't in his normal arsenal of bedroom eyes. Truly, he almost bordered on creepy he was being so attentive, but Erina didn't seem to mind. Erina seemed to be in a kind of paradise as he gazed at her and Jeaule felt, for one moment, sorry for her. If she'd only gotten over Jareth and found that happiness with someone else…things could have been so different, but her obsession had turned into a sickness and she needed to be stopped.

Jeaule knew that it was almost time for Sarah to come back and the hold over Jareth will be 'broken' in Erina's eyes. She couldn't wait to see her sister's face fall as Jareth's attention left her and went to Sarah.

"Good afternoon everyone," Sarah said brightly as she entered the room, a bouquet of flowers in her hand that only seemed to make her look all the more gorgeous. Jareth's eyes drifted to her and Jeaule silently cheered him on as he executed what Cyric had told him perfectly, the confusion only slightly apparent on his face. He took one more look at Erina and then back to Sarah before standing up, as if in a daze, and crossing to his soon to be queen.

Erina was livid and it was shockingly obvious, but Sarah seemed to ignore it while Jeaule stifled another laugh off as a cough.

"Oh dear, are you ok?" Sarah asked kindly, only making her want to laugh more at the dramatics, but she nodded shrugging it off as possible reaction to the flowers. Her friend sighed in relief as she hugged and kissed Jareth. "Oh good, I would so hate it if you were ill." Jeaule curtseyed, hopefully showing her sister that there wasn't as much of a friendship as before. She did, after all, want her sister to believe her still.

"Yes Lady." She saw the amusement on Sarah's face when she turned from Erina and smiled. "Is there anything else you wish of us today Lady Sarah?" Sarah turned, as if just remembering something and nodded.

"Yes, yes actually. I wanted you two to help me with the gardens. They aren't as lovely as I'd hoped, a bit neglected I think, and I wants to spruce them up a bit." That was just an excuse of course, Jeaule knew, to have them both there a lot more. They agreed to do so and when they finally left the room Erina went off.

"What the hell happened?!" Her voice was shrill and made no attempt to hide the building fear.

"Surely, I don't know, but…but…" Jeaule drifted off, knowing her sister would bite soon. Erina did just that, gripping at her arms painfully and shaking a bit, her eyes wild and frenzied.

"What what…you know something!?" It did sadden her to see her sister, half crazed before her, but she knew what had to be done.

"Well, the potion might not have worked BECAUSE of his great bond with Sarah." Erina answered exactly as Jeaule had predicted, with a strangled cry, gripping her hair as if for balance as her world tipped upside down before her.

"Then you will drug him again, we will do it again! Yes, yes…that will work." Her eyes were wild and unfocused as she realizes what Jeaule had intended her to. "If this goes wrong," she wrapped a hand around her throat as she gulped, she didn't need to finish, they both knew exactly what would happen if this went wrong.

And it would.

**Later** that night, Sarah sat at the mahogany desk that Jareth had brought in and was writing letters. Letters she wasn't sure she would ever be able to give to those she was writing to. But she had to write them, she had to get it out. She finished the letter to her father and stored it in the crystal as Jareth had showed her earlier.

When she clicked it shut, it vanished before her, but she knew she would be able to call it back whenever the time came that it would be needed. It was in her magical storage now. When the pen, she couldn't stand quills, she had conjured touched the next piece of paper, her hand froze. What was she going to say to Toby if she ever saw him again?

When the pen touched the paper next everything she wanted him to know passed through the ink to the paper. By the time she was done, tears coursed her face, knowing finally, that Toby would die far before she ever did. If she was lucky, he would call for her and she would at least be able to explain things and perhaps even be a part of his life.

She just prayed to the gods that he called.

**(A/N: Hey guys! Hope that the chapter pleased you! I will be off on vacation to my sunny home state of California next week, so sadly, you won't get another chapter until the FIRST Saturday in August. I am really sorry about this, but it's quite impossible to take my laptop with me on this trip, so I had to decide to let a week pass.**

**BUT you are getting a new one shot called "Family Bonds", a one shot that was actually requested by a reader on what is happening to Sarah's family back home. It sounded like a great suggestion and my mind got a lot of ideas, so I ran with it. Hope you enjoy!**

**The people who made me VERY happy last week with their reviews are: BattleofEvermore, darklady26, Dark Angel Millenia, Kerichi, notwritten, saz89 and The Banshee's Tears! You guys all make me a giggly mass of author when I get your reviews. Love to you all!)**


	25. Insanity Comes Swiftly

**Disclaimer:**** I am so beyond sorry for the delay my readers! I got very sick, obviously won't go into detail, and was unable to either review or write until this week. I am better now though and this story will now continue to go on weekly as before. Much love, Grace**

**Oh yeah…and I own no rights to nor do I profit from anything in this story that is copyrighted to the original Labyrinth, but all the OC's and any original locations ARE mine.**

**Fourteen** days, that's all that was left before the last grain of sand fell in Sarah's invisible timer. Two days now, they had been fooling Erina back and forth, letting the potion 'work', only to have it falter again. How were they going to be able to keep this up long enough to have Medb remaining unknowing? Surely she would figure things out soon and try something else to tear her and Jareth apart?

Her heart lurched at the thought, it was very humbling to realize just how much he meant to her now. And it was truer than she could stand, she hated it when he had to go out and fool Erina, no matter how much he was acting. There was a part of her that resented having to share him, even though she really wasn't. Gods, there was no way to adequately describe what she was feeling…or perhaps jealousy was a nice word.

That's where Jareth was right now, stringing Erina along once again. In the gardens this time, she thought as she primped a bouquet of roses and lilies that she'd gotten from there this morning. The late morning sun drifted lightly over the soft petals, dust motes dancing merrily in its beam. That was something, she thought, that she could never think in the Aboveground.

Up there, the dust motes seemed to hang in the suns light like lifeless…well, dust. But here, here they seemed happy to be able to dance and drift in the magical light of the Underground. What would she do if she lost that? If Medb won? She felt a tear slide down her cheek and dabbed at it, dumbfounded. How could a silly dust mote end up making her cry?

"I have never felt more polluted in my life!" Jareth's voice and the bang of the doors slamming shut behind him made her jump and abandon her train of thought. Her love was wiping at his clothes as if there were invisible dirt caked all over him that refused to be swiped away. Apparently, nothing he could do was ridding him of the 'pollution' so he stripped the clothing off and tossed it into the fire.

"Well, that was probably unnecessary…" Sarah commented absently as she watched the flames catch the clothing and set them to blaze.

Jareth's voice drifted from where his brandy was stored, "Believe me, love, it was more necessary than you know." She turned and nearly sighed like a besotted schoolgirl at him. He was by no means 'built', but that didn't matter. His long, rangy body was toned and, she knew, hard as a rock, yet with that impossibly soft skin that you always imagine royalty to have. In her mind, she already had her hands on that silky skin and…Sarah shook her head, knowing if she didn't stop her thoughts, intelligible words would never escape her lips.

"I can imagine having that woman draped over you, even for the briefest amount of time would be nauseating." Sarah had to hold her contempt for the plan tightly to her breast. She knew he cared not at all for the woman, as his present attitude only verified, but the fact that she knew that woman was touching him…touching that silky skin…it made her magic simmer within her.

"It's more than nauseating, love," Jareth amended as he crossed to her. He rested his forehead on hers, calming her instantly with the gesture that had become equivalent with saying, 'I love you.' Her brow furrowed a moment…had they ever said that to each other…? Her mind dismissed it…of course they had. But she missed the unsure tone that even her mind had. "Please take a bath with me, Sarah. I need to wash this feeling away and you can reach better." She laughed as she led him into the bathroom.

"Yes, let's get those Erina cooties off of you." He turned to her, confused.

"What are cooties?" She smirked as she turned on the water and added a scented crystal to it.

"Cooties are that 'pollution' you said you felt," she answered absently, not remembering that Fae probably had no idea about schoolyard humor. "I could just give you a shot and get rid of them." His face was lingering somewhere between hopeful and apprehensive.

"There's a cure?" That's when it clicked in Sarah's head that he had no idea what she was talking about.

"Oh, Jareth…it's a joke." His face fell in dismay. "It's an Aboveground thing." Jareth shook his head disappointedly.

"Build me up just to knock me down, huh Sarah?" His voice was sarcastic enough to pull a laugh from her.

"Well, love…you are so much more appealing on your back." To distract him further, she stepped out of her clothing and lowered herself below the rising water. He slipped into the tub and rested himself back against her chest, conjuring something that resembled a loofa for her to use. "Guess I really am washing you then, Highness?" Her voice held just enough sarcasm behind the smile that he scooted himself back closer to her.

"If it's not too much trouble." His airy tone was annoying, but also held a joking tone that kept her from shoving the loofa down his throat. Grinning, she lathered up the loofa-like object and let her arm drape over his body to wash his chest.

"I suppose I can handle it for a while, but you're going to reciprocate." He nodded dejectedly, but she knew he grinned, even if she couldn't see it.

"As you wish, my Lady." Jareth regaled her on the morning's terror of dealing with Erina. How he'd had to pick a flower and tell her that its beauty was nothing compared to her. That memory caused a shiver through his body that even Sarah felt. "She is so close to insanity now that she doesn't even question why it is I seem to have so much free time all of the sudden." Sarah gave a sad sigh, it wasn't exactly on the plan that the woman would go crazy, but there was nothing they could or would do to prevent it. Erina had threatened their safety by joining forces with Medb, they had no pity for her…well, none that they would show anyways.

It made her think back to days better left in that forgotten time of her life.

"Well my love, insanity comes swiftly to those whose realities are twisted in their minds," she spoke absently, not really aware she'd done so. Jareth said nothing, knowing it wasn't needed or wanted, merely maneuvered so she was leaning back on his chest and took the loofa from her hand. She sighed gratefully when he pulled her close. It was comforting to realize that he knew she was thinking of her own trip thru insanity and back. Even more comforting that he didn't offer her empty words, but only moved to make her feel better.

"Then let us both forget our insanities." She laughed gently, wanting to do just that…forget it. But she knew she never would and perhaps that was for the best, she'd already forgotten so much and look what remembering had brought her. Sarah turned in Jareth's arms, stroking wet fingers over his cheek.

"But, love, you are one of my insanities."

**Jeaule** stared down at her journal as the afternoon light shifted slowly over its pages, content now that she'd laid her feelings to the pages. It had been so long since she'd set ink to paper to relieve the pressures of the day and it felt good to share those pent up emotions with the shabby journal that had been with her through the good and the bad.

Erina was in the room, but it hardly mattered anymore, she was often lost in herself, quietly murmuring of her plans that would never come to fruition. Jeaule didn't even bother hiding the journal when she closed it and crossed to her sister, thinking a bit fatalistically, that at least her things weren't being broken anymore. At the moment, Erina was staring down at the gardens they had just been walking in with Jareth, a dreamy smile on her lips as she caressed the flower that he had given her.

Said flower was down to only three petals, she had stroked it so much, but she didn't seem to notice or care that she was destroying the very thing that her mind was cherishing. And wasn't that the theme of what was happening to the woman sitting across from Jeaule? Erina completely folded in upon herself at times and no matter how much Jeaule knew it wasn't the sister she'd always known…a part of her was breaking to see Erina like this.

Once vibrant blue eyes went gone dull and lackluster whenever her mind started slipping. More often than not, they were glazed over as she lost herself to her daydreams. Her skin, once a creamy, milky white had turned to the sickly pallor of one who no longer cared. It was her hair that broke Jeaule the most though, the long silky, shiny waves of onyx that Erina had treasured so…gone dry and uncared for, a nest of tangles and split ends.

Jeaule couldn't stand it, she crossed her room to her vanity and picked up her brush and a pair of scissors, intent on giving the sister she once loved at least the benefit of her hair. As she brushed out her sister's waist length hair, Jeaule barely noticed the tears that began slipping down her cheeks, didn't want to notice them. She set brush to hair in much the same way as she'd just laid ink to paper, to release everything that had taken a stranglehold within her.

"Thank you Jareth…so kind…" her sister muttered as she crushed off another petal, obviously lost in reliving the morning in the garden. Jeaule wiped the tears from her eyes without a thought to them and began trimming the dead and frazzled ends of her sister's hair off. When she was finished, it wasn't the shimmering cascade of raven hair it had once been, but Erina didn't look quite so crazed either…and that was something.

Jeaule's heart clenched in her chest as she bent over and kissed Erina's cheek, "I'm so sorry Erina…"

"What do you mean you're sorry…?" Her sister's voice was clear and lucid, Jeaule snapped back, as if burned. "Sorry for what?" Those eyes, she'd snapped out of it again, they were vibrant once more…and angry. A knock on her door saved Jeaule from having to come up with a story right away.

A worried Blix appeared from behind the cracked open door, "A moment please, Jeaule…?" Erina waved her hand as if to give her leave to talk to the unimportant goblin, reigniting Jeaule's awareness that the person before her wasn't someone who deserved her tears.

"Of course, Blix," she answered kindly as she crossed to him and closed the door behind her when she entered the hallway. "What can I do for you?" His thin, knotted fingers wrung hopelessly before him as his nervous, bulbous eyes shimmered with the worry that was clear as crystal on his face.

"I just received some news that I would really rather you deliver to his Highness." Her brow furrowed in confusion, but the lanky goblin took it as something different, continuing in a harried fervor. "I am sorry to have asked you to do this, it's just…they seem to have taken a fancy to you and I figured that they would take the news better if it came from you." Jeaule placed a hand on his shoulder to calm him.

"I don't mind, Blix…calm yourself. What's the news?" After his body visibly slumped into relaxation, his long, gangly fingers held out an envelope to her, addressed to Jareth in scrawling crimson letters. Jeaule took it from him and when she read it, her body gave the most impressive response, her stomach plummeting as her blood boiled in anger. "I will go tell them right away, tell my sister I will return."

It was apparent in his eyes and body language, shifting from foot to foot nervously, that he didn't want to go anywhere near Erina, but he nodded as she walked past him down the hall. The note she carried should have incinerated in her hands, she was so angry at its contents, but she knew that Blix was very right about one thing, they would take this new far better coming from her.

**Bathing** was over, but Jareth allowed himself the luxury of drying his Chosen off as thoroughly as possible, lingering in areas to make her giggle and sigh in turn. When he heard that final sigh of pleasure, he dressed her in a beautifully airy, cerulean summer dress. Himself he dressed in his usual attire without a thought.

Jareth was about to lead Sarah out onto the balcony for a late lunch when a light, almost hesitant, knock sounded on their door. When admitted, it was Jeaule who strode through the door, trailing all the wrath of Morrigan behind her in invisible waves of anger.

"What happened Jeaule?" Sarah left his side to cross to her friend who was waving a dismissive hand while making her way to the couch.

"I worked myself up is all, I need to sit." Jareth made his way behind where she was sitting to lay a hand on her shoulder, which was shaking she was so upset.

"What did Erina do this time?" His careless question got a response different from what he'd expected…laughter. "What, may I ask, is so funny?"

Hand to her heart in an attempt to quell the laughter, Jeaule answered him, "I really don't know Highness, my emotions seem to be all over the place this morning." She handed him an envelope with hasty crimson lettering. "But I think you might understand the anger once you read that." Jareth circled round the couch as he opened and read the letter within…the invitation within.

"Hell," was all he managed as he sighed and slumped down into his chair. Holding up the invitation, slightly crumpled, in his hand, he turned to Jeaule. "Well, I guess fragile little Damien has decided to come out for some sunlight, huh?" Jeaule nodded.

"That was my first thought." Sarah, who was sitting between the two of them slapped her hands down on her thighs.

"Ok, bring me up to speed again…" Jareth was sure she was exasperated by hardly ever knowing what they were talking about. "Who is Damien?" He turned his attention to her, holding up a hand to Jeaule to say, 'I'll take this one'.

"He isn't someone who is seen often and when he is, it's not usually because he is up to any good. So it makes me suspicious and I assume Jeaule as well." The blonde nodded in agreement. "You see, Damien is a new king, young and foolish, never taught how to rule a kingdom well and fairly. He looks for loyalty where he can find it and this party is probably one in a line of foolish attempts to gain good standing with someone for something stupid he is about to do." Jareth watched his love as all the realization sunk in, as she figured out exactly why they were upset. That's what he loved about her…he didn't have to explain everything.

"So Medb will most likely be there." Both he and Jeaule nodded and watched Sarah's face redden in anger. "How could he do such a thing!? Surely he must know of what that bitch tried and is trying to do to us?" Jareth laid a hand on her knee, sending his magic out to help calm her as well.

"There isn't anything we can do, love. This is the Fae way of things." It was apparent that Sarah didn't give a rat's ass what the Fae way of things was, but she would have to learn…and learn to respect it if she was to stay here. He told her as much and that had her calming down.

"I understand, I can still think it's stupid though." Her pouting, angered acceptance of it all made him smirk…she would always be the same Sarah and he loved her for it. "Why does he HAVE to invite all?"

"Because no one has angered HIM." The simplicity of it was easy enough to understand, but he knew that his Sarah would never like it and was probably the wiser for it. "But read the invitation, it might shed a different light on things for you." He sat back in his chair as Sarah opened it. "It's probably one of only a few personalized ones, we should feel exceptional," he added with a smirk that the girls giggling.

Sarah read the invitation, reading it aloud when she got to the personalized portion of it, "We abhor what happened in the Goblin Kingdom recently, but we regret that we have to invite everyone." Jareth merely smiled at Sarah in that 'told-you-so' way, that earned him a pretty scowl, as she continued, "If any kind of disturbance takes place, the disturber will find themselves in more trouble than it would have been worth." Sarah put the parchment back in the envelope with a sigh. "Well at least it doesn't seem like he is on anyone's side." Jeaule shook her head.

"Of course he hasn't taken a side. He doesn't know which of the parties will back him up in whatever stupid thing he is planning right now." Jeaule's knuckles were white as she gripped the fabric of her dress. "So he will have you both there to feel you out for support…sneaky little bastard. He knows everyone will come." Jareth reluctantly agreed.

"No one can turn the invitation down. His appearances are so rare, it's rude to not go." He sighed again as he steepled his fingers and rested them on his lips. "I don't like it, but we have to go. It's in four days, I suggest we all prepare pretending to be on our best behaviors." He watched as Jeaule bit her lip nervously. "What is it, Jeaule?"

"It's just…you might not have thought about it, but Erina has to go." It was true…he hadn't thought about that part. "She's Sarah's personal handmaiden just as I am, she's included in the invitation." His steepled fingers parted as he rubbed aggravated hands over his face.

"We have to find a way not to take her, we have four days…let's figure it out."

**Jeaule** was tired the next day, having sat up a lot of the night with Sarah and Jareth trying to figure out a way to keep Erina from coming with them to the Damien Dinner. Everything they had thought of would have made no sense to everyone but the three of them and they had one major person they had to convince, Maesia.

It was ultimately up to her if Erina came with them or not since Maesia was the one who was really in charge of the sisters. The three had decided to talk to her after dinner tonight to bring her up to speed on what was going on with Erina. Jeaule had hoped to spare Maesia having to see what was happening with Erina, to spare her knowing all that Erina had done…at least for now.

But it couldn't be helped, she was the only one who could say yes or no without a great plan they none of them seemed to be able to come up with.

"We're tapped out," she heard Sarah say as she pulled another piece of her hair into place. Jeaule's eyes focused back on the work she was doing.

"What do you mean?" Sarah laid one of her hands on Jeaule's.

"I can see the wheels spinning in your mind." Jeaule let her arms drop to her sides, wondering, a bit off topic, why Sarah was having her do her hair when she could magic it into any style she wanted. "And again, I see them working…I had you help me get ready tonight to take your mind off of everything. It seems I've failed miserably," she finished with her lips caught between a smirk and a pout.

"I'm sorry, I'm just so aggravated that we couldn't think of a THING to do!" She set the clips down, muttering a curse to herself as she let her magic finish the work. "I don't know why we bother doing it ourselves at all." Sarah leaned back in her chair, admiring the work.

"I assume it's the menial labor of it, just something to do." Jeaule rested herself against the side of the giant bed, nodding.

"I assume so, but I don't plan on 'just doing it' any more tonight," she said with a grin as she waved a hand over Sarah's face, her makeup materializing right on her skin. The simple earthy tones were always perfect for Sarah's skin and those brilliant green eyes.

Sarah sighed with pleasure as she looked in the mirror, "God bless magic."

"Gods…" Jeaule qualified. The girls finished dressing for dinner. A simple dinner at home meant a simple dress, which the girls were thankful for. More detailed dresses took much more time to think up. After Sarah had chosen a simple A-cut, rich green dress, Jeaule went with a muted gold empire waist cut. She'd never had the most ample of bosoms, but at least the cut flattered them to the best possible degree.

When the two arrived, arm in arm like old friends, the dining room was already filled. Erina would have already 'drugged' Jareth, probably given him a 'double dose' even. Jeaule threaded herself and Sarah through the goblins who carried platters of food to the table and the guests who were walking up and down the table, attempting to find a spot to sit.

She felt Sarah's arm stiffen in hers and squeezed her friends hand when she saw the why of it…or should she say the who of it? Erina was lingering over serving Jareth his first course, giggling at his side as he played his part perfectly. Jeaule stopped and turned to Sarah, thinking her friend might need to hear what she wanted very badly to say.

"I'm sorry you're going through this Sarah." Her friend seemed stumped by the words.

"It's for a reason…" Sarah started, but faltered.

"But it still hurts." Raven hair shifted in the candlelight as Sarah nodded weakly. "I'm sorry I suggested this." Sarah's hand gripped at her arm.

"This was the best plan anyone came up with Jeaule. Don't feel bad about that for one minute." Jeaule was about to talk back to Sarah once more when a smile split her friends face. "But it would be nice to bitch to you once in a while about it." Jeaule let her lips quirk in response. She should have known Sarah would say something like that, she thought as she marveled again at how surprisingly strong the woman before her was.

"I think I can handle that." Jareth spotted them as they got closer and his eyes lit with relief that Erina couldn't see. Once his eyes were on Sarah, he stood and went to her, offering his arm to lead her to the seat beside his. Jeaule could see how firmly he gripped her hand, his thumb caressing her knuckles in a silent 'I love you'. It calmed Jeaule to see it.

Jeaule could see her sister's dark blue eyes gleam with a dangerous light as she made her way back to her customary chair. Jareth sat with Sarah at his right, the couple in middle of the head table. Maesia was to Jareth's left, Jeaule to Sarah's right, a higher seat of honor than Erina who sat on the other side of Measia. The gesture was not lost to anyone nor did anyone, save for Erina, care.

Dinner pushed on, Jareth's attention lost in his Chosen. Jeaule stole sporadic glances down the table at her sister. It wasn't looking good, her eyes were glossed and wild looking and her food sat untouched. Then, when dessert was being served and Jareth leaned over and kissed Sarah's cheek, what Jeaule had been dreading happened.

The high pitched, crazed shriek sounded from her sister as she slammed her plate to the table and rushed from the table. All merriment and chatter silenced in the dining hall as every glance in the room turned to her sister's figure, storming out of the great doors, slamming them hard behind her.

"In the name of the Gods, what is wrong with that girl!?" Maesia's voice rang clear through the silenced room. Jeaule felt bad at that moment that they hadn't told the woman all that had been going on, but it was also when the light clicked in her head. Hesitant and hushed discussions started up again as Jeaule got Sarah and Jareth's attention.

"We have to take her with us to the dinner," she exclaimed in hushed tones. Sarah's eyes went wide with disbelief.

"You want us to take her so we can purposefully let her freak out at that dinner?" Jeaule nodded fervently.

"Think of it…Medb will be there as well." Jeaule could see the light flicker on in their gazes as smiles spread slow and dangerous. Jareth nodded in approval of her plan.

"She will see the potion isn't working and will punish Erina for her final failure." He stated it slowly, knowing exactly how that punishment would be laid out. Jeaule could tell that he felt bad for her and truly a part of her stung badly, knowing her sister was finally going to reap all that she had sowed.

"Then we would have only ten days to figure out what we need to do to win against this woman." Jeaule silently thanked Sarah for the diversion of her thoughts.

"I will see if I can get Medb to tell me anything." She could see the apprehension in both of their eyes. "You both know I am the best and only bet at finding something out right now." Admission was in their eyes, if not their lips.

"All I care about is that Jareth won't have to pretend to be enamored of her anymore." Jeaule smirked as Jareth's lips spread in a roguish grin.

"Didn't like sharing me…even in play, love?" Sarah's eyes lit as she gave a wicked grin of her own.

"If it had gone on much longer, I'd have killed her myself." The three chuckled as they ate their dessert, the hall gone back to its merry normality, no one aware of the death sentence that had just been written.

**(A/N: After so long a wait, there was a chapter guys, it fought to get written this week because my sickness left me with a wicked case of writers block, but hopefully, it came out well. I needed to get this chapter out for you guys, my loverly readers, because I do love and adore you all. **

**Those who earned uber love and adoration for reviewing last chapter were: angelbabe2000, BookwormBrea, Dark Angel Millenia, darklady26, Kerichi, notwritten, phantome101 and saz89! Much love to all of you! You guys are the reason I was PISSED while I was sick! LOL**

**Oh…there is also a new chapter added to "The Diary of Jeaule Olincamp" if you wish to go on over and read that as well.)**


	26. Insanity's End

**Disclaimer:**** I own no rights to this, all characters that you know and recognize belong to Jim Henson and those who worked on the movie. I make no money from this, merely enjoy the reviews from my lovely readers. **

**I am sorry that, once again, this story was delayed. My back was injured recently and I was unable to sit at a desk. Seeing as I only have a desktop computer…you can see why that would pose a problem. I am better now and am freaking PRAYING that nothing ELSE happens to me. LOL Thanks for sticking with me through the tough times guys, I love you all!**

**Escorting** Medb to Damien's dinner was the last thing that Cyric wanted to do. It wasn't even because of his childhood feud with the young king or the fact that Damien had stolen more from his family than honor. It was the fact that he knew that more than Damien's petty political ambitions were going to be the talk at this party.

Jeaule had filled him in on the event that they had concocted to ruin Damien's hastily slapped together party. That gave him at least some small joy about all that was going to happen tonight. It would be quite fun to see Damien's careful political aims fall to pieces as the events of the night played out.

He had his part to play this in as well though and figured he might as well start now. As Medb finished dressing, Cyric crossed to her, conjuring and slipping a delicate yellow flower into her hair that didn't suit her at all, but she wouldn't care…it was the gesture that she would like.

"I suppose we shall find out tonight if Erina's grand plan is working." He slipped as much disdain as possible into his words, knowing he needed to get Medb agitated about the whole idea before they arrived.

"I suppose…" Medb attempted to shrug it off, but he had other plans.

"Though, I'm sure it if WERE working, we would have heard something by now." In the mirror, he saw the doubt flash in her eyes. "Surely, news of the king seeming to be amused by another woman would spread like wildfire." Fire flashed in her eyes before she stood and they teleported to Damien's castle.

It was decorated for the event all right, fairy lights were hanging everywhere, almost too many of them. Cyric could see that there were torches draped in golden, shimmering material lining the halls inside the castle as well as an overly ornate chandelier. It appeared that Damien was trying far too hard to impress everyone and the effect was merely pompous, but that wasn't shocking to Cyric at all.

"Yes well, I hope for her sake that I see something different," Medb answered through a smile as she handed their invitation to the guard. As they passed through the doors, the smile faded. "If I do not see something different however…it will be her last night in the Underground."

As they entered the dining hall a beautiful young Fae took them to their seats…at the far end of the table. Cyric had to bite his lip to keep the smile down. Medb, on the other hand, had no problem voicing her opinion, though she surely knew the reason for their seating.

"The far end of the table…?" She gave an indignant huff as she settled into the seat, cringing and frowning as if the seat cushion were made of shattered glass. With her nose turned up, she turned to Cyric, "This seat is for peasents…not a Queen." Inside he was wondering what the hell she wanted him to do about it, outside, his face was perfectly consoling.

"Oh my doesn't the Lady Sarah look beautiful tonight?" He heard the Lady Irelen say beside Medb. While Medb snorted derisively at the comment and the Lady Irelen curled her lip at her, Cyric's gaze sought Jeaule. When he found her, his heart went out to her.

To anyone else here, she looked beautiful and vibrant, but he could see the strain and sadness pulling at the corners of her lips, darkening the shocking gold of her eyes. She avoided his glance, but he'd known she would. They couldn't be seen staring at each other in public, he thought with a dark inner growl, but not for much longer. Soon she would be his to parade around as he saw fit.

"Oh yes, sit THEM next to King Damien, THAT'S fair" he heard Medb mumble next to him. He silently agreed with Damien's choice of seating, it would put him in a good light for most of his guests to honor Jareth and Sarah and condemn Medb. He was sure now that the little bastard was planning on smooth talking people into banding with him on some ridiculous quest of venture.

Once everyone was seated, Damien finally arrived, with all the pomp and swagger Cyric had imagined; he was shocked that the little freak didn't let doves fly or something equally as inane. Damien, for Cyric refused to call him a king, was dressed as absurdly as he had when he was younger, clothed thickly with vibrant colors too overpowering for his pallid complexion. His short, chubby body looked like a human beach ball in tonight's color choice of bright reds and blues.

His face was as pinched and round as Cyric remembered it from childhood, giving him the permanent expression of being in severe pain. That face was currently attempting to pull of a smile, though he merely looked constipated. He raised his meaty arms high above his head, to make everyone feel welcome Cyric imagined with a roll of his eyes.

"My friends," Cyric choked on a sip of water at that one, receiving several irritated glares from those around him. "I thank you all for coming tonight, I am sure we will all enjoy ourselves!" A polite cheer rang through the hall as dinner was wheeled out. Cyric imagined that Damien wanted to jump the cart as it came near him, but decorum disallowed it…he thought in Damien's haughty tones.

Cyric didn't much feel like eating as dinner wore on and he had to endure watching Erina look more and more agitated. He knew things were going to come to a pass soon and from the look on Jeaule's face, so did she.

"Jareth doesn't look at all interested in Erina if you ask me." Medb commented from beside him about halfway through the meal. "Her eyes glaze over bit by bit as she sees me watching her…she knows it isn't working either." Medb's voice took on a razor edge as she slapped her glass down on the table, earning another perturbed look from Lady Irelen. "Oh eat your food!"

"Well, I never" the Lady Irelen exclaimed as she turned herself as far from Medb as possible.

"I doubt that…" Medb muttered, stabbing a piece of steak she didn't intend to eat. Cyric sighed and took another bite of his steak; this was going to be a long night.

**Everything** was going according to plan so far. She'd taken quick glances down and Medb and could see that she wasn't pleased with how things had turned out with Jareth. It would be quite an explosion when Erina finally went, they were at the head of the table. Jareth was sitting closest to Damien, Sarah next to him, followed by herself, Maesia and Erina. So when Erina went, Damien would get a front row, center seat of the action.

Dinner wore on and Jeaule was actually getting anxious for it to happen, she could tell it would soon, but by the GODS she just wanted it to be over with already. Her stomach was so upset, she wasn't able to touch her desert, much to Damien's dismay.

"My dear, it's as stunning a creation as you are." She thanked the gods that she was able to control her gag reflex. Damien hitting on her had her stomach hurting even more. It wouldn't have been that bad, but every time he laughed, his neck fat jiggled in the most nauseating way.

That's when it happened.

Erina jumped out of her seat with a screech of anger and hurled her desert at Sarah, effectively ruining her gorgeous evening dress. Fingers curled into claws and eyes mad, Erina lunged for Sarah, but stopped short as Jeaule tripped her. Damien looked appalled as he snapped his fingers, summoning two guards that gripped Erina's arms.

"I'm sorry, Jareth, but I have to detain her." Jareth made a show of cleaning Sarah.

"No worries, friend. Do what you must with her." Erina's blood curdling cry was a sharp arrow to Jeaule's heart. When those angry sapphire eyes turned to her, she thought her heart would simply rend from her body.

"YOU!!!" Erina screamed as she tried to get at her sister. "It's all YOUR fault! You did something I know it! You're no sister of mine!" Her insults faded as she was dragged from the dining hall, but they were still crystal clear in Jeaule's mind. It killed her that the final things she would hear from her sister were full of so much hate. She couldn't admit that she'd thought she'd get more than that, but it would have made it hurt much less.

Or would it? She didn't know or care at the moment and felt Sarah's hand on her leg.

"I have had enough of this!" Medb's voice rang from the end of the hall. "I, for one, don't feel like staying in this sideshow dinner." She gestured for Cyric to come with her and he gave Jeaule one last comforting look before disappearing after Medb.

Confused whispers followed her disappearance. Everyone in the room knows what constant violence goes on in her castle, so everyone was confused as to why this small act should have bothered her. Jeaule's stomach felt like it filled with lead for she knew the exact reason behind Medb's strange behavior.

She was going to get rid of her sister tonight.

"I think we shall make our exit as well, my Chosen's friend has been quite ruffled and I believe she would benefit from some rest now." Jareth's words couldn't have been more appreciated at the moment.

"Oh, well…if you think you must." It was apparent that Damien didn't want them to go, naturally not, he hadn't pitched his idea yet. But she also knew that the tubby little man would never deny them their exit. With kind thanks to their host, they made their way back to the Goblin City.

The low rumble of thunder in the distance greeted their return.

"Are you ok, Jeaule?" Sarah's light worry did little to make her feel better. All she wanted at the moment was a bit of solitude with her raging thoughts. Turning to her friend she smiled, not a very convincing one, she knew…but a smile none the less.

"I will BE ok…but for now…I think I need to be alone." Sarah nodded in understanding before she turned down the hall. Jareth placed a hand on Jeaule's shoulder and squeezed slightly.

"It was a brave thing you did tonight." She didn't feel brave, she felt dirty and wicked.

"I did nothing." Jareth leaned down and kissed her cheek, giving her a sad smile.

"I know."

**Storming** into the dark and dank holding cells wasn't as difficult as Medb had thought it would be. She and Cyric had met with only one guard and he'd been easy enough to stun into blind silence. Then again, it's not as if the stupid girl was much of a threat, they must have seen the insanity in her eyes. Medb was sure her own mirrored it, though in a much different way, she was crazed with pure fury at the idiot girl for failing in this.

Medb was going to make sure it was the last thing Erina ever failed at.

The roughly built stone walls were damp with the moist air in these levels of the castle and Medb could feel it slicking on her skin. She hated the feeling and vowed to punish the girl all the more for the inconvenience of having to steal her from the depths of this poorly constructed dungeon.

Finally, Medb could hear the pounding of fists against a metal door and the demented screams coming from within. She didn't need to search for Erina at least, she thought with little satisfaction. Medb motioned for Cyric to open the door.

"Restrain the little fool right away, I don't wish to have to kill her here." No indeed, she thought as Cyric did as she bade, Medb had much better plans in store for Erina. "Hello." She kept her tone frosty and lethal, pleased when Erina's shrieking silenced and her skin paled at the sight of her.

"No…it was working…it WAS!!" Medb tuned out the rambling that commenced as the three transported to her kingdom. As always, the beautiful sound of men fighting to the death in a pathetic attempt for her love met her ears as they arrived. That sound alone was enough to silence the screeching beast that was Erina. Medb grabbed the girl's arm and wrenched her away from Cyric, leading her roughly into the castle, not caring that her hand would leave dark bruises on Erina's arms.

It wasn't like the girl would have them much longer.

She led the now silenced and yet still frenzied girl through the narrow, dimly lit hallways of her castle until they reached the destination Medb had been moving towards since Erina had disrupted that dinner, the courtroom. None of the judges on panel would go against her, paid as they were to judge as she would. The five in question appeared in their seats as she stormed through the doors, shoving Erina to the ground before them.

"This ridiculous excuse of a girl as disappointed and failed me for the last time! I demand she be tried!" The five knew automatically what they would do, it was as they always did, sentence the girl to a punishment of Medb's choosing. It was the best and only way to stay alive and well paid.

The obvious elder judge stood, watery, shifty eyes refusing to meet the gaze of anyone as a nervous hand raked through thinning white hair, "We submit her to a punishment of your choosing oh wise Queen." If she'd have been paying attention she would have heard Cyric's startled gasp from behind her, but her mind was reeling with the pleasure of getting to sentence Erina to the worst death she could imagine.

"I move to sacrifice her to the Demon Kindraa." Even the judges couldn't refrain from their horror-struck gasp of shock. It had been nearly a century since someone had been sacrificed to the Great Demon and it wasn't a sight anyone wished to see again, but it seemed that Medb had taken the choice out of it.

**Cyric's** jaw dropped at the harsh sentencing. It seemed like the whole courtroom took a simultaneous gasp at Medb's harsh sentence…or at least that's how Cyric made sense of the sudden heaviness in the air. Surely, Erina hadn't done enough to warrant such a terrible death? His dazed mind tried to rationalize it, finally deciding that this wasn't a punishment of Erina, but a way for Medb to keep from admitting that she was that much closer to losing everything she'd been working for. If she killed the poor, wild eyed girl currently balled on the floor screaming, it would be like she'd won something small back.

With that realization, he stepped out of the guard's way, knowing that he couldn't say a thing against this and knowing as well…that a part of him had wanted this. Though, he could never believe that he'd wanted so terrible an end for her, no one would wish this on anyone…except Medb.

"Are you coming, Cyric?" The woman in question snapped from across the room at him, shouting over Erina's shrieking. He could tell that she didn't care one way or another if he came or not, so opted to remain far away.

"I think I will watch it from the courtroom balcony." The words were like cotton in his mouth, causing it to dry up from the effort of getting them out. "It will be a much more splendid view," he offered, praying to the gods that she wouldn't want to join him, for he didn't plan to remain there.

Cold blue eyes never really looked at him as she nodded and strode from the room, beckoning the guards to drag Erina behind her. Cyric shivered as her screams faded away down the hall, thinking it a small comfort, for they would sound again soon as they entered the vast courtyard of the castle.

His eyes grazed over that courtyard right now, only a few people strolling through, merely enjoying the quickening wind, unaware of the horrors they were about to behold. And what a night it was, it seemed as if the sky already knew what it was about to watch over, for it was thick with dark, threatening clouds, the call and flash of thunder and lightning not far off. He could smell rain on the air, thick with the moisture of the impending storm.

As the first drops of rain fell on the aged stone of the courtyard, Erina's cries once again assaulted him. He watched with a heavy stomach as she was dragged by her arms over the rough stone, kicking and screaming, her fine dress, spotted with new rain, ripping on jagged edges of rock. Her legs were getting cut up, but she didn't seem to notice, all her eyes seemed to be locked on was an upside down view of the post that she would soon be shackled to.

Medb, eyes almost as psychotic as Erina's, waited by the post with a grin on her face that made his stomach churn. The heavy shackles were clamped around her wrists and the guards left Erina there to writhe in a desperate attempt to free herself. The blood came quickly as she struggled against her restraints, tearing at the soft skin on her wrists. Medb didn't seem to mind her fury and Cyric knew why.

Once the first drop of her blood hit the wood below her, it would summon Kindraa and would identify and condemn Erina as her victim. The rain, which was falling more ardently now, only aided in this, causing her blood to run down her arms in thin red rivers. Cyric had never seen a sacrifice to Kindraa, but he'd heard enough of it to know that it was one of the most gruesome things anyone could see in their lifetime. Medb had acquired the sacrificial alter from Kindraa herself when she'd formed the deal with her; it hadn't been used in nearly a century.

It seemed that the era of disuse was now at its end, for he heard Medb's triumphant shout and knew Erina's blood had fallen to the wooden alter below her. As spoken of in tales of this altar, Kindraa appeared, gathering herself from the shadows and forming her human façade.

He knew, as all other's who were watching knew, that the beautiful woman who was standing there now was not what she seemed. Her voluptuous build, deep chocolate colored hair and curving lips couldn't disguise the burning red eyes or the fact that the rain evaporated around her before it touched her skin. It merely became a smoky vapor around her that only made her seem all the more mystical.

"Who is this delectable little morsel you've offered to me, Medb?" Behind the honey soaked words, Cyric could hear the growling demon, discontent with being disturbed. Kindraa trailed an abnormally long, elegant finger over Erina's cheek, her fingernail leaving a slender trail of blood in its wake. Erina seemed to have lost the will to scream further, merely hung from the shackles she was bound with, shaking with the fear of what was to come.

"Her name is Erina, Great One." Something akin to a purr, yet far more frightening than any cat, emanated from the demon as she licked at the slice she'd created on Erina's cheek. Cyric wasn't sure he could watch much more of this, it was like a predator teasing its prey before it devoured it.

"She is quite tasty, this one…" Kindraa sighed as fire crackled to life at the ends of her fingers and at the tips of her hair. "So full of fear." Cyric flinched as Kindraa's features shifted, showing more of the demon beneath the human casing. Her skin stretched and looked almost like rock veined with molten lava, her mouth pulled back, seeming to unhinge, revealing devastatingly sharp teeth, but her eyes remained…those vicious red eyes.

He watched as the demon with a woman's body reared back, preparing to strike. Cyric knew he couldn't watch this, he didn't want to be here, he wanted to be with Jeaule. He should be with Jeaule, she would need him…someone, anyone tonight. Without looking back, he turned to teleport himself away from the carnage, Erina's final shriek falling on his ears as the room vanished around him.

**There** were only a few pages left in her tattered journal, but her grief stained words ripped from her and, through ink, were saved on the aged pages. Her tears splotched some of the words, but she didn't care. No one would ever read this journal, save for herself, and she knew that this night would forever be imprinted upon her soul.

A storm built up outside, seeming to grow with her grief and perhaps it was. Her window was open, the wind blowing her curtains into a maelstrom of white fabric. She didn't care that the wind and rain were intruding on her sorrow; she welcomed it with open arms and tears that poured as surely as the torrent of rain outside.

It was the ripple of familiar magic that had her slamming her journal shut and storing it away. Surely enough, Cyric was there when she turned. Her body lurched up, wanting to go to him, but the look on his face stopped her as sure as stone wall. He was plainly sickened by whatever scene he'd just left and her stomach dropped as she realized just what he must have witnessed. His eyes, drooped with sadness and worry for her, told her all she feared.

Her sister was dead.

Legs turned to jelly beneath her and the floor closed in quickly as she fell to it, Cyric rushing to her side. His arms wrapped around her tightly, as if he believed that his touch alone could protect her from all she was feeling. While it was gallant, sweet and did give her some measure of comfort, the empty, pulsing hole in her chest was unaffected.

"So soon, Cyric…?" Jeaule managed to choke it out, though the pain was numbing. "Why so soon?" Every emotion she'd bottled against her sister seemed to shatter under the crushing knowledge of her death. Jeaule had known this was going to happen, had even facilitated it and she had also known that it would hurt beyond measure, but nothing she could have imagined would have prepared her for this absolute pain.

"Medb was angry, love…" Cyric answered as he stroked her hair. "She needed to be appeased." Jeaule knew this even as her body shook with rage and sorrow.

"How-"

"No," Cyric cut her off swiftly. "That is not for you to worry over right now." She wanted to beat at him, to tell him that it was her sister and she had a right to know anything she wanted, but she knew that he was right, she wouldn't be able to handle knowing that yet. Defeated, she simply huddled herself in Cyric's arms and cried until her whole body was sore from it.

Calming down, Jeaule shifted away from him, a sudden thought coming to her that threatened to have her insides shifting on her all over again, "Why did you come here?" Her heart clenched as she thought of Medb killing him as well for not being there. "Won't Medb notice you're gone?" Her mind raced, wondering what she would do to him. "What if she-"

His lips cut her off, soft and gentle against hers and doing more to calm her hurt and nerves than words ever could, "It's ok, I don't think she is going to be caring about much tonight except for her small victory." She watched him cringe at his choice of words and cupped his cheek.

"It's true that this was a victory for her, I know that." Jeaule took a deep breath as she pulled herself up onto her bed and off the cold stone floor. "Just as I will always have to live with the knowledge that I worked my sister right into that fate." Cyric started to deny what she was saying, but she held up a tired hand. "It's true, don't try to deny it. I don't regret what I did, for it wasn't really my sister who died today, though it is my sister that I mourn."

She was pleased when he seemed to understand, moving to sit next to her, she was happy that she didn't need to explain herself. His arm wrapped around her again, not as a security blanket this time, but in silent comfort that was very welcome.

"I don't care if she misses me tonight," Cyric started. When her eyes grew large and worried, he put a finger to her lips. "You need me tonight and honestly…" he paused slightly, something haunted crossing his eyes. Whatever happened to her sister must have been something terrible for it to have bothered Cyric so deeply, "…I need you tonight as well."

She nodded and pressed a soothing kiss to his lips. Without words, they prepared for bed and slipped under her covers. Considering it was the first time she'd had a man in her bed, she was surprisingly unabashed by it. Though, that could very well have been because they weren't going to bed tonight as lovers, but as two people who merely loved and needed each other's comfort on this horrible night.

When he pulled her back against him, she sighed. The pain wasn't erased, but it did subside.

**(A/N: Well, there's another chapter, kinda dark…I know, but this story is definitely going to be darker before it gets lighter. Hope you enjoyed the chapter, despite the death. **

**There will be a chapter of ****The Diary of Jeaule Olincamp**** to go along with this, though it will be posted in a few days. Hope you enjoy that when it comes out!**

**Readers who reviewed and made my backache temporarily better for my euphoria are: ****angelbabe2000**** (Beans spilled soon!), ****BattleofEvermore**** (Yeah…she's a bit slow, but she's getting there.), ****BookwormBrea**** (I'm all kinds of excited that I got a song, hope Erina's demise pleased you!), ****darklady26**** (As always, my loving sister…one of my favorite reviewers!), ****Kerichi**** (Yay for the fine line between respect and compliance!), ****LDeetz**** (Yay for reading everything at once! Now that's awesome! It's great to have you!), ****notwritten**** (Here's more for ya hun!), ****phantome101****saz89**** (Hoping, as always that I pleased you with Erina's demise!) & ****xfae-princessx**


	27. The Calm Before the Storm

**Disclaimer:** **I do not own any of the following, Labyrinth and all characters within it (that aren't my original characters) belong to Jim Henson and the creators of The Labyrinth. My characters (Jeaule, Erina, Medb, Cyric…etc), however, DO belong to me so ask me first if you want to use them for any reason.**

**Sarah's** dreams were hauntingly real. So real in fact, that she wasn't sure they weren't just horrific visions of reality. She'd woken several times in the night, panting with relief at the respite from the nauseating images her mind was producing. Vicious images of Erina either being burned slowly over fiery molten pits or being torn limb from limb by the misty fog that hung in the air, forming wicked looking claws only when it wanted to tear flesh from bone.

No matter what happened to the ever screaming Erina, however…her body always seemed to come back together, only to be destroyed anew. It was like a sick new twist on Prometheus that left nothing to the imagination.

When those mesmerizing, tortured sapphire eyes locked with Sarah's mid scream, her whole body jerked in fright. The scream that emanated from Erina as her arm was severed, once again, from her body didn't sound like a scream at all. It didn't even sound human.

Or even frightened.

Morning birds, that's what the sound was. Sarah awoke from her wicked nightmares, sick with the guilty relief she felt over Erina's…absence. She simply couldn't bring herself to admit, despite her vividly horrific nightmares, that the elegant young Fae who had attended her on her first day in the Underground…was really dead. It didn't seem possible, but it was most assuredly true. Sarah didn't see Medb as being someone who was lenient with failure.

She just hoped to the gods that the girl hadn't died as horribly as she had in Sarah's nauseatingly real nightmares.

From the feel of the bright, clean breeze that caressed her face before her eyes opened, last night's storm had blown over and Jareth had opened the balcony doors to let in the brilliant morning sunlight. Sarah frowned as she realized that this meant his warm body wouldn't be laying next to her. She didn't like that one bit.

She let out a quiet groan as she stretched the sleep out of her stiff, over-rested muscles, delighting in working out the early morning kinks. When she finally cracked an eye open, she discovered that she was correct and Jareth was indeed missing from the bed beside her. Her eyes scanned the room for him and rested on his figure, leaning back carelessly in his desk chair, the light from the open balcony doors slanting softly over the angular contours of his face. There was a sly, secret smile on his face that Sarah hoped against hope had nothing to do with Erina.

With an inner sigh at having to get up, Sarah reluctantly pulled herself from the warm, downy softness of the bed. As her feet hit stone, she was pleasantly surprised not to have gotten instant frostbite as she had been recently. She thanked the gods that the morning sun had warmed the stone floor beneath her feet and wondered if that was why Jareth had opened the doors.

The man on her mind didn't acknowledge her presence as she moved closer to him, but he obviously knew that she was there, for his arm reached out for her when she was close enough. She smiled at the gesture as she allowed herself to be gathered up. His arm wrapped around her distractedly as she slipped into his lap.

"What's that?" Sarah asked, noticing the letter he was reading. Jareth's fingers rubbed at the soft material of her chemise as he actually managed a snort of derisive laughter. It shocked Sarah to hear it, considering the events of the previous night, but once she thought of it, she realized that he was probably far more accustomed to the death of an enemy than she was.

Even if that enemy had once been called a friend.

"It's an overview of the delightful proposal Damien gave last night" Jareth told her, the smile still spread over his face. "He was kind enough to send me a briefing on it since we were forced to leave so early." Sarah's gut twisted guiltily as she agreed.

"What did the butterball propose?" she asked in a desperate attempt to get her mind off of Erina, though she knew it would be a futile effort. There was no doubt in her mind that Jareth was picking up on her mood through their magic bond, for his arm squeezed her closer in an almost imperceptible move.

"He says that he planned to take the bay at the border of his lands under his own control." Sarah frowned at this.

"What will it gain him? Does he have ships that he would use the bay for trade purposes?" From the appreciative hum that came from Jareth, he was pleased with her thought.

"No, though that would be the only reason I would think to take it." He shifted her in his lap so that he could watch her. "I suppose this will be your first lesson in matters of royalty, but you're doing splendidly so far."

She gave an unladylike snort as she actually managed a chuckle, "I'm just using common sense right now…don't get too excited for me."

"Well," Jareth started thoughtfully. "Most of ruling a kingdom is common sense." He adjusted the letter in his hands so that he was reading from the top again. "He doesn't want the bay for a port of trade, as would be marginally acceptable, but merely for sport." Jareth paused there, apparently waiting for her take on that.

"I suppose that wouldn't be a terrible thing," Jareth almost cut her off mid sentence, but she continued without a pause. "BUT it would depend on who he would be taking the land from and how." Again, her answer seemed to please him and she couldn't help but realize that this was becoming somewhat of a test for her. "And, I surmise, from his need of support that he will have to take this land from someone who doesn't want to give it to him freely." Jareth nodded his silent approval of her reasoning. "So who does he want to take the land from?"

"King Menoas." He supplied, not offering what he was king of. Sarah sighed when she realized that he wasn't going to supply the information. Jareth seemed to forget that she didn't know any of these people.

"And he would be…?" Jareth pulled his eyes from the letter, confused for a moment.

"Oh, yes…he is the king of the Mer-People." Her brows shot up quizzically.

"Are you serious?" Jareth nodded absently. "This place just gets weirder and weirder," she commented under her breath.

"He ended up with no supporters," Jareth seemed pleased by that and she realized that must have been why he was smiling when she woke up.

"As well he should have. If this King Menoas doesn't want to give him the lands, who are we to take it from him?" She felt Jareth's lips caress her neck.

"You just passed the first test, my soon-to-be Queen." Sarah was about to ask how she could have possibly failed such a simple test, when he answered her minds question. "You see…we all rule the lands that the gods bestowed upon our bloodlines. It goes against the very title we have been given to take what the gods did not give to us freely." He paused in his thoughts, obviously thinking about how he was going to impress upon her the importance of all of this. "By right, I own the Goblin Kingdom, when we were challenged by Medb, the act cost her a portion of her own kingdom. While the gods couldn't prove it was she who'd done it…she was punished in a way. The lands were given to the Lord and Lady of Dendum."

Sarah's eyes brightened, "Cyric's parents I assume?" Jareth nodded. "So will that become a kingdom in its own right someday?"

"The lands they received, in addition to what they already owned, still do no make their claim large enough to be called a kingdom by the gods." He gave a mighty sigh as he laid the letter down on the worn wood of the desk, his hand coming up to pinch the bridge of his nose. "King Menoas, on the other hand, has vast lands…all of the Great Lake is his."

Sarah's lip quirked as her brows furrowed, "Only a lake?" Jareth chuckled, shifting her into a better hold before teleporting them to the library. On the wall before them, he conjured an ancient looking map of the Underground that made her gasp. It was far larger than she'd ever thought. In her mind, the Underground was Jareth's labyrinth…and recently Medb's and Damien's lands. It was so much more than that.

Before her was a vast map, Jareth's lands, lightly dyed green, was located on the south end of the intricately weaved pattern. Sarah could see the delicately woven labyrinth that twisted and turned through what Sarah was astonished to see was only a portion of the land he owned. The rest of his lands looked to be roaming forests and gorgeous farmlands.

Medb's lands, to the east, were larger than Jareth's, though they seemed mountainous and wicked looking. Her slice of the map was colored a darker, more threatening red over the craggy looking mountains and the little woven castle nestled before them. She could even make out the various arenas where she pitted all those poor men against each other in an empty battle for her hand. Overall, her kingdom was a frightful thing that Sarah hoped never to see.

Damien's lands, to the west of them, were smaller than the Goblin Kingdom and were comprised of mostly flatlands and minor lakes, labeled as ponds. It appeared that he owned a lot of the beachfront property, though there were bays…like the one he wanted to take from Menoas, that didn't fit into his yellow tinged portion of the map. The rest of the beach property, surprisingly, belonged partially Jareth with the rest falling under the hand of King Menoas.

The Great Lake, which looked to Sarah more like something on the scale of a sea rather than a mere lake, dominated the far west of the map and was nearly the size of Medb and Damien's lands combined. The suitably blue stained portion of the map was impressive indeed, but Sarah figured that it would have to be that way because the Mer-People wouldn't be able to inhabit many of its areas. There was no way that Mer-People, if they were anything as the humans of the Aboveground had depicted them, would be able to live in the shallows. Nor would they live in the dark and deserted depths of the water. No, she thought as she gazed over the expanse of the Great Lake, they would have to live where there was vegetation and life, for life cannot persist without life.

The northern part of the map was tinged white and labeled as the god's territory, it was enormously larger than the other four kingdoms, nearly the size of all four combined. Though, it was the patch of land that bordered all four of the land based kingdoms in the middle that caught Sarah's attention. It was neither labeled nor was it color tinged and her fingers traced over the spot.

"That is the land that the gods gave to the Lord and Lady Dendum after the attack on the Goblin Kingdom" Jareth explained. "Well, most of it anyways." Sarah turned to him, annoyed by his cryptic answers.

"What do you mean, most of it?" Jareth let his fingers trail over the patch of land.

"That is why Cyric seemed so mad at the party last night." Sarah hadn't noticed that Cyric was upset, but she wasn't about to admit that to Jareth, so simply nodded as if she understood. "Damien stole lands from Cyric's family the way he is planning to steal them from King Menoas." Sarah was appalled.

"So you're telling me that Damien thinks he can get away with stealing this bay because he stole land from Cyric's family and got away with that?" Jareth nodded, when his fingers pulled back from the map, the small plot of land was nearly twice as big.

"That's how large it used to be." It was still small when you compared it to the kingdoms surrounding it, but it was far larger than what it had been reduced to. "Cyric will never forget it and I don't blame him a bit for it. Everyone thinks that was his initial reason for going to Medb…for help getting the lands back." Jareth sighed as the map returned to normal. "But somewhere along the way, she drugged him into servitude." Sarah gasped as she realized just why Jareth seemed upset.

"She did that to try and get her lands back!" Again, Jareth nodded, noticeably pleased that she figured it out.

"All over this little patch of land." Sarah dropped into a nearby arm chair, disgusted by the actions of these petty rulers. "What I am most worried about is this portion of the map," he said it with a loving worry as his fingertips brushed over the green tinged slice of map labeled 'Goblin Kingdom'. "If Medb wins this bet of hers with the gods…." He seemed unable to finish the sentence as his head shook sadly.

Sarah didn't need him to finish though, she knew perfectly well what it meant. If Medb won…she gained control over him and in turn, the Goblin Kingdom. Who would care about a pathetic little patch of land once she had her hands on Jareth's lands…and his power?

"And Erina tried helping her." His harsh tone cut through her thoughts and into her soul. "She would have died either way," he said simply, turning to Sarah. "I hope you know that." It was in his voice…he knew that she was having trouble dealing with what had happened.

"I just don't know how to deal with her being gone." Sarah tried to focus her suddenly haphazard thoughts. "I think I have trouble knowing that I aided what happened to her." Jareth stood still by the map, she knew that he wasn't going to show grief for the girl. "Don't get me wrong, I hated that girl and I wished her dead or worse on more than one occasion, but now that she's really dead and gone…" she trailed off, not really knowing how to finish. She felt sick with guilt and yet wasn't truly remorseful. There wasn't a word for what she felt.

"You feel sorry for what she used to be." She nodded weakly, knowing that was a part of it, but not truly the reason she felt so nauseous. "Sarah," his voice was right next to her, she hadn't felt him move, but there he was. She didn't need his comfort, she wasn't sad…he knew that. She didn't need soothing words, she wasn't crying…he knew that. "I think you need a day of relaxation with your friends."

That…she needed.

"A day away from worry and damned politics," he sneered, gesturing to the map. "So call your friends and I will take you out into the labyrinth for the day." He felt her reluctance to have a carefree day and pulled one of her hands to his lips. "It's a waste of time to be sorry for something that wasn't your doing." With a last sigh, Sarah nodded. "Good…go check on Jeaule first, make sure she's ok and ask her to join us if she wishes."

"She won't," Sarah murmured as she got up. "But I will go see her anyways." Truly, she wanted to check on her friend and see how she was holding up so it wasn't difficult to teleport herself outside of Jeaule's door. With a deep breath, Sarah knocked lightly on the dark wooden door, the sound of it echoing through the empty hall around her.

Moments later, Jeaule opened the door. It was apparent that she had been crying, but there was a small smile on her face none the less as she spotted Sarah. She was wearing a long silvery nightgown that made her hair shimmer as the light from her open window flashed through the white curtain of it.

"Hello Sarah" she spoke softly, not opening her door. Sarah wasn't offended by it though, she knew that her friend would want to be alone today, she just needed to make sure she was as ok as she could be.

"Hey Jeaule." Sarah felt awkward as she shifted her weight and rubbed the back of her neck. "I just wanted to check on you." Jeaule's smile cracked a bit wider at her nerves.

"I'm as well as can be expected Sarah. None of it was our fault." Hearing that from Jeaule made all the difference in the world to Sarah. If the woman before her could grasp that…then so should she.

"Jareth is taking me out into the Labyrinth today," she paused, seeing in her friends eyes already that she wouldn't want to go. "I came to see if you wanted to go." Jeaule smiled at her again, her pink stained cheeks rising and her eyes shining.

"I think I will keep to myself today…as you well assumed," she added with a reassuring squeeze to Sarah's hand. Sarah nodded as she squeezed her friends hand in return, knowing it was all she needed or wanted.

"Come to me when you feel better, till then, I will let you be alone with your thoughts." Jeaule was grateful, that much she could tell as she thanked Sarah and closed her door. Feeling a bit better, Sarah went back to Jareth and began gathering her friends.

**Jeaule** shut her door quietly, feeling a bit down that she'd declined the request to join Sarah for the day, but knowing that she would have been foul company if she'd gone. She knew that Sarah was by no means celebrating what had happened the night before, but was merely attempting to stem the remorse over the absence of Erina. Jeaule crossed back to her bed, where Cyric awaited her with open arms.

He'd been so stupid staying here with her all night…and into the day, but even as it worried her senseless that he would get in trouble for this, she was grateful to her very soul that he'd held her all night. She folded herself back into his arms and sighed when she felt his lips on her brow.

"Relax, love…you don't have to worry about anything today." She gave a quiet bark of laughter at that.

"You have got to be joking? I have plenty to worry over." Her fist balled and smacked against his bare chest lightly, his shirt had been lost to comfortable sleeping the night before. "You for one."

"Me?" he asked with a valiant tone. "You needn't worry about me lady dear." He made her laugh…damn him, she thought with a smile.

"Oh but I do." She answered, ashamed that she had to cast a shadow over things again. "What if you get in trouble for being gone so long?" Cyric's crystal blue eyes darkened at that.

"I'm not her trained poodle." He spat viciously. She knew it wasn't directed at her, but at the thought of Medb. "I don't have to account every minute of my time to her." Jeaule let her fingertips glide over the hardened line of his jaw.

"As far as she's concerned," she said softly. "You do…." His jaw loosened as his hand came up to cover hers on his face. He turned his head so his lips brushed over her fingertips.

"I know you're right, but I can't leave you." His eyes beseeched her to let him stay.

"I should force you to go…right now." His eyes fell downcast, a unwanted defeat echoing in every body movement. "But I would be denying myself the one person I really need right now." She watched the smile spread slowly over his face, though he didn't look up at her.

"I knew you'd see it my way."

"Conceited brat," she teased gently as she smacked her laughing love with a pillow.

**Sarah** hadn't been sure that her idea of a picnic with her friends and Jareth had been a very good idea, but now that they were all here, she couldn't for the life of her think WHY this would have been in any way a bad idea.

Truthfully, she'd been worried that Jareth would make a big deal out of Hoggle again, but he had called him by his real name the whole time, even been…nice to him. Well, Jareth's brand of nice anyways. It seemed that Hoggle's actions on the night Medb had tried to kill Sarah using him as bait redeemed the dwarf in Jareth's eyes. Sarah was glad to see that at least that ONE thing had worked out. Even if all the rest went wrong, at least one good thing had come out of all of this.

"Sarah?" Hoggle's question brought her out of her happy reverie.

"Yeah Hoggle?" she asked, bringing her eyes back into focus.

"I was just wonderin' how things are goin' with…everythin'." She knew that he meant Medb from the way he averted her eyes and shuffled his feet at the word 'everything'.

"It's not far different from what it was in the beginning." He seemed dejected by that.

"Yeh don't know anythin' new?" Sarah shook her head pathetically, feeling just as crestfallen as Hoggle looked.

"All we know is that we have about a week left…and she's still trying to win, which means WE haven't yet." Hoggle plunked himself on the ground before her, his stubby fingers scratching at his temple. Jareth walked up behind him, followed by Didymus and Ludo.

"What's the matter with Hoggle?" Jareth asked as he settled himself beside her. He pulled her back against his chest as he had taken to doing today...his little way to soothe her without making her feel like a coddled child.

"Hoggle hurt…?" Ludo bellowed the question as he looked down at the dwarf who did indeed look to be in a bit of pain, though he was only thinking…really hard.

"No, no, I'm not hurt." Hoggle stammered quickly as he struggled to compose himself. "I was tryin' ta think of what that stupid bet could be." Sarah waved a hand dismissively.

"I don't want to talk about that today," she stated simply. "Today was supposed to be for relaxing and having a bit of calm before the storm." Hoggle seemed reluctant to let the issue drop, but Didymus laid a tiny hand on his knee as his mouth opened again and shook his head to silence the dwarf.

"If the lady wishes a day of merriment, then that is what we shall give her." And merriment they gave her. Jareth summoned the bonfire in a flash of magic that startled a shriek out of everyone but Ludo who simply gave a pleased 'Oooo'. Didymus shocked her as he brought out a tiny little instrument that looked almost like a miniature guitar, and started to strum out a lively tune.

The spot Jareth had brought them to was picturesque and soothed her in and of itself. It was a quiet little spot by a tiny little waterfall that trickled down into the almost silvery water below. Sarah was sure that it was a special magic place, for the moment she stood there, her body and soul had relaxed. The air itself seemed infused with joyous magic that made even the usually dour Hoggle dance around the fire with an unusually perky smile on his face.

"You're tricky you know that?" she whispered back to Jareth as she leaned further back against him.

"Whatever do you mean, sweet Lady Sarah?" He asked in mock shock. "Surely you don't stoop to accusing me of something?" She sent her elbow playfully back into his side as the laughter escaped her.

"You know what I'm talking about. This place," she trailed off, motioning around her, "there's something special about it isn't there?" He shifted his arms behind his head for support as he smiled.

"Might be" was his cryptic answer. She turned in his lap, pinning him with a impatient glare. "Okay, okay…that waterfall over there," he said, pointing at the trickling water, "it's magic." Her face fell in exhaustion.

"Duh…" His laughter was rich, most likely enhanced by the magic she already knew was in the air.

"It's a Euphoria Fount." He smirked again at her obvious ignorance. "It makes everything around it happy."

"I figured as much, I just didn't know there was such a thing." He nodded as he pulled her closer, his eyes taking on a look she would much prefer to see in their bed chamber.

"Yes, many happy events happen here." She laughed, full and loud as she pushed him back.

"Not today my insatiable love," his eyes darkened at the words and she couldn't help but smile as she rested a hand reassuringly on his chest. "Not right NOW." His eyes lightened again as she laid back against him, content to watch her friends laugh and sing around the fire and simply let the fount do it's job.

**Night** fell before he decided that he should indeed get back. Cyric knew that he'd taken a risk by staying with Jeaule today, but it was one that he'd needed to take...desperately. Their parting had been hard, but his Jeaule had shed no tears, he wasn't sure she had any left right now. Instead of being sad and telling him how much she would miss him, she'd slapped his arm, forcing a smile and told him that he'd better not end up in trouble.

It was exactly what he'd expected of her.

While he knew she would indeed miss him and be sad they were apart, he was glad that she didn't make their parting worse. After all, he thought as he walked into Medb's darkened chambers, they would be together soon enough.

A deadly smooth voice emanated from the shadows of Medb's bed that shattered his happy thoughts and sent shivers through is body, "Now, now, now…where have YOU been?"

**(A/N: Another chapter down. Only a week left until the end of the bet now. This story is definitely closer to the end than the beginning now! Sad really! The readers who kept me happy through this week, though there were far less than normal and THAT saddened me, were:**

**Angelbabe2000, darklady26, dillwave and notwritten.**

**Thank you for reviewing guys and everyone else, remember, reviews are like candy to me! I LOVE THEM and they don't rot my teeth out!)**


	28. What Could Be

**Disclaimer****: I have no rights to most of this, nor do I make money from it…all rights to Jim Henson. Only the original characters and locations within the Underground that I have created belong exclusively to me.**

**Darkness** faded as his eyes slowly grew accustomed to it, everything focusing into moonlit shadows. He finally caught sight of her across the room, her body draped languidly in her favorite armchair, and wished he hadn't. She appeared completely at ease, but the anger coursing through her was unmistakable when you caught her eye. Cyric figured that he was now effectively screwed either way he answered, so he, against better judgment, decided to have it out.

"I was with someone else." He watched, pleased, as her body tensed in anger. Her fingers clenched in on themselves reflexively, as if ready to hit something, but his reckless need to get her back for everything she'd put him through was growing stronger by the second.

"You had better tell me it was an old friend of yours from school." He didn't have to ask to know she meant a male friend, but this was his chance to finally tell her off and he wasn't going to back down.

"And if it wasn't?" Temper flared like a living flame around her as her magic spun in angry, uncontrolled crimson loops around her.

"Then you wouldn't be very comfortable for some time." Cyric didn't think to ask what that meant, he was so caught up in the inner joy of finally getting to say what he wished to her. He was blind and deaf to the meaning of what she was saying.

"I haven't been very comfortable for some time now," he spat, disregarding the gripping feeling on his insides. "So I guess it won't hurt to tell you it wasn't a male friend from school." He laughed as her magic gripped at his innards painfully. "If there had been male friends like her in school…I might never have met you." He used his own magic to push hers out of him.

"Who is it," she asked, her magic trying to claw at him. He knew that he was far too distracted by his hatred to guard himself for very long and Medb had extensive practice at using her magic while angry.

"No one you would know."

"Is it that little, blonde bitch that Erina brought in here?" Her face was nearly as crimson as the magic swirling about her, Cyric couldn't help but laugh at her.

"I believe her name is Jeaule," he commented with a haughty tone. "And no, certainly not, I don't go for the pale, waif-like beauty," he added, trying to fill his voice with disdain so she would never accuse Jeaule of being his mistress. Though she was, he thought with an inner smile, she was his.

"It's too bad for you and your whore then, whoever she may be." His brain finally registered that something was wrong with Medb's words. She was angry, yes, but he knew her, he should have been dead by now, not standing here chatting with her. "I have promised you to Jeaule already, so you can tell your mistress that you won't be seeing her again." His utter confusion was apparent even to Medb now and she laughed heartily at it. "You thought you were going to be killed, did you?" The angry loops of magic around her faded as her laughter continued. "Oh, how amusing."

Cyric's temper flared, "Since when have you ever kept your word?" Her laughter stopped, she looked shocked for a moment before her face melted back into a disdainful smirk.

"Oh, I see, you're speaking of your silly little lands," Medb taunted. Cyric saw red as he glared at her laughing eyes.

"It's why I came here." His voice sounded like a growl even to him, but it seemed to delight her further. Medb's grin spread slow and deadly over her face as she tapped her finger to her lips, stalling the moment to torture him further.

"I don't think you will be getting those now, no, no…surely not." His rage sparked higher, his own magic beginning to form visibly and angrily around him, but to his utter annoyance, it only amused her. "Actually, I think thanks to this expansive little show of disobedience, I shall take ALL your family's lands once I have Jareth." He knew lunging at her would do nothing, but he did know one way to swipe at her without his fists or magic.

"Big talk for someone whose plans are crumbling at their feet." Her magic swelled viciously again and sent him flying across the room, cracking him roughly against the far wall. Cyric didn't need a healer to tell him he'd broken a rib…if not a few, for the pain was stabbing through him like fire.

"Oh," she exclaimed, crossing to him. For one terrifying minute, Cyric thought she would regret what she'd done, but reality came crushing down on him in the form of her foot rested heavily right on a sore rib, lancing the pain through him again. "I mustn't hurt you too badly, you're still for sale after all."

A vicious scream emanated from him, caught somewhere between pain and fury, as he did lunge for her, throwing his magic at her without guessing the target. It bounced off of her though, much to his regret and only fueled her laughter. He wanted to build up another bout of his magic, but a big part of him knew that it would be a futile effort to try again.

"I'd expected something like this from you," she said to him as if she were talking to a beloved pet. He half expected her to start petting him. "And I prepared for it." She'd placed a shield around herself, Cyric knew it without hearing the words and it simply added to the blinding pain that was coursing through him. "I shall call the girl tomorrow, since I DID make a deal with her." Her emphasis on the word 'did' made him wonder what the hell she meant as she called in her guards to subdue him. "The deal I made with her was binding since I actually INTENED and indeed still intend to give you to her, should she fulfill what I ask of her." His head dropped as the weight of her words fell on him like a thousand bricks.

"You never intended to give my lands back." He let his body slump between the guards, realization dawning on him that he'd spent all this time here for nothing. Across from him, Medb clapped happily as if her trained poodle had finally performed a trick she'd struggled to teach it.

"I'm so happy you figured it out." Her tone steeled his back again, he wasn't her damn poodle. Medb's smile faded instantly as he showed her she hadn't broken him. She waved her hand dismissively to her guards, "Take him to the dungeon." Cyric smiled as the guards dragged him, though the pain lancing through his torso was unbelievable…he could heal himself later. He smiled because he wasn't worried that Jeaule wouldn't want him, so figured that a week or so in the dungeon wouldn't be so bad.

The only part that worried him was what happened if Medb won.

**Jeaule** woke the next morning and felt the intense loss of Cyric immediately. She'd grown so accustomed to his body there in bed with her that the loss of its soothing heat and soft skin was surprisingly disheartening. Not sure if he would be awake or not yet, Jeaule gave herself time to dress and prepare herself for the day before sending her magic out to him.

Once she was clad in her usual long gown, though this one was a bit lower cut, a rotten influence from Sarah that she ashamedly loved, she strolled to the window to take in the labyrinth this morning. It was gorgeous in the morning light, sunlight filling all the dark and shadowed places of the night. Watching the ever changing expanse of the labyrinth gave her more hope than she could have thought.

No matter how often it changed, how often thing within it crumbled and died or grew and prospered…it was still the labyrinth. She supposed it was a strange analogy for life, but one that pleased her immensely. Jeaule knew that she would always miss her sister, but everything happened for a reason and she couldn't live the rest of her life wallowing in the misery of it. She could remember Erina without debilitating herself from life to do it.

With that thought, she sent her magic out over the early morning breeze to Cyric.

It was about an hour later that her heart started clenching painfully in her chest. Why wasn't he answering…? She sent her magic out again and went distractedly about her daily chores. There was no chore menial enough to keep her mind off of the fact that he wasn't answering her though. Everyone was starting to notice the frantic pace of her duties that day and it was Blix who finally confronted her.

"Jeaule…?" he asked plaintively. Had she caused that much worry about herself that day? She looked up into his ever watery eyes and knew that he was worried for her. Did all the goblins think that she was going the way of her sister? She hoped not.

"Yes Blix," she answered, trying to reel in her emotions so she wouldn't further worry the poor head of goblins.

"Everyone…that is, myself ma'am," he started in his usual broken sentences. "We, I were just wondering if you're okay…?" It killed her to know that she'd worried the staff she'd been working with for so long.

"I'm fine, I just…I think I need a bit more time today." He knew that she meant because of the absence of Erina, though he didn't know of her fate as of yet. But everyone soon would, she thought darkly, and then everyone will want to offer her unwanted sympathy. She would have to deal with that when the time came, but for now, her mind was on the fact that it had been half a day and Cyric still hadn't answered her. Jeaule headed to the one place she knew she would find some comfort, if not answers.

She knocked on the giant double doors, sick at how often she'd been disturbing the two of them lately, but relief washing over her when Jareth answered the door.

"I'm so sorry to bother you." Jareth laughed and beckoned her in.

"No, no, Jeaule…we're quite used to you interrupting us." If it hadn't been for his jovial tone, she would have been ashamed of herself. Though, it was quite obvious that her presence wasn't unwanted. Jareth's mirth was short lived when he saw her face though. "What's wrong?" His face had fallen into lines of worry as he called to Sarah, who'd been in the bathroom.

"Hi Jeaule, I'll only be a minute, what's up?" Sarah asked, bent in two, a towel rubbing furiously at her hair.

"It's Cyric," she paused, no knowing how to continue. "See…he was here the night of…and all yesterday and-" Jeaule heard Sarah's laughter from under the towel, but didn't fault her, her friend hadn't seen her fear etched face yet.

"It's about time!" she exclaimed as she flipped her hair back and stood straight. Jeaule saw Jareth wince at his love's words, but she wasn't upset at Sarah, she had no way to know….

Making sure her voice was level, she continued to Sarah, who was still in the bathroom, "We didn't do that." Tears slipped down her cheek as she lamented it. They should have. It could have been their only chance. She shook her head, not wanting to think the worst as Jareth's hand gripped her shoulder reassuringly.

"Sarah, get in HERE for the love of the gods!" he bellowed towards the bathroom. Sarah came out with a smile on her face that dissolved the moment she saw Jeaule.

"Oh gods…" was all Jeaule heard before Sarah was right before her taking her hands. "What happened?" Jeaule told her of Cyric comforting her and how she couldn't contact him today.

"He just won't answer!" The tears had stopped at this point, she was sure that her body was tired of making them. "I just don't know wha-" Her body went stock still. Sarah's eyes went wide as she shook her friend.

"Jeaule…!?" Jeaule came to her senses and stared at her friend, as shocked as she was by what had just happened.

"Medb just called for me." That wave of dark, paralyzing magic had been unmistakable. Sarah's face looked aghast.

"You can't go" she said simply, as if it were a decree. Jeaule shook her head and sighed.

"I have to do, if I don't, it looks like I'm not helping her anymore." Jareth was nodding at her statement and took Sarah into his arms to keep her from crushing Jeaule's.

"She's right Sarah, she has to go." Sarah seemed beyond reluctant to let her go, but Jeaule knew that she had no choice. If Cyric was still alive, her not showing up would surely be a death sentence for him.

"We just have to hope that she makes a mistake then," Sarah said, her voice still unconvinced that this was a good idea. Truly, Jeaule didn't WANT to go, but she had to and she knew that.

"Everyone makes mistakes when their plans are falling to ruins." Jareth's words gave her a bit of hope as she mentally prepared herself for what she was about to do.

"I hope you're right," she sighed before she teleported herself to Medb's castle.

**Making** the girl wait had been intentional. Medb paced her room slowly, debating if she'd made Jeaule wait long enough yet. Had the girl looked out the window down at the blood stained podium yet? Had she realized just what happens to people who fail her? Medb wondered if the blonde would even think that the blood stains were her sisters.

Would she ponder the time it took for her sister to die? The almost hour it took for her screaming to abate? For her body to fall still and silent on that podium? Medb doubted that the pretty blond's mind would be able to wrap around the sheer scope of torture that had taken place there.

Perhaps she'd punish the sister as well, but why? She would simply have to think of a reason.

Cyric could be punished too if not for the deal she'd made.

What was taking the girl so long to get here?

Why was it so dark in here?

Medb shook her head, suddenly a bit frightened at her mind. Her thoughts were starting to become a bit frazzled, slipping from thought to thought without much segue. Oh gods, she thought desperately, was she actually starting to get scared that she wouldn't win this bet?

Of course she was!

She only had six days left! What the hell was she going to do now? All her lands would fall into the hands of Jareth and that stupid hybrid BITCH if she didn't figure things out soon. She wouldn't let that happen, wouldn't let all the work she'd done all this time fall at the hands of a stupid girl who didn't even BELONG here! The only tool she had anymore was Jeaule, so she decided to go meet up with her.

She couldn't afford to lose her help. At least one answer would stem from this meeting…if she needed to prepare another meal for Kindraa. Medb's whole spirit was uplifted at the thought of another show so soon. Her delight showed on her face as she swept into the room Jeaule had been waiting in for the last thirty minutes. Medb was so perky, in fact, she was sure it was off putting to one who knew she was never like this. From the look on the girl's face, that was exactly the impact it had upon her.

She slipped into her chair, a smile on her face as if she hadn't just killed this girl's sister. Well, she thought distractedly, she hadn't really killed Erina, Kindraa had done the honors. All Medb had done was serve her up on a silver platter…wood…whatever. Medb came back to her senses then, shaking off the fact that her mind seemed to keep wandering out of control.

It appeared that it hadn't gone unnoticed either, for Jeaule was looking at her, neither frightened nor sad and angry that she'd just lost her sister. No the girl was merely giving her a strange look that was no doubt because of her wandering mind. Medb needed to change the subject…and fast.

"I called you here today to tell you that your product was roaming around yesterday." She watched as one of the girl's brows arched elegantly.

"Roaming?" The girl seemed interested…perhaps, Medb thought hopefully, a bit upset too.

"He was with another woman." Medb watched her reaction, though to her dismay the woman before her seemed more annoyed than anything.

"I thought that he was bound to you?" Had she caught a hint of irritation in that soft voice? "Should I be worried that what you promised me might not come to pass?" Oh, how was this getting out of her hands? The girl was upset at HER. Why was she putting up with being spoken to like this? Medb shook her head, more to Jeaule than to clear her thoughts.

"You needn't worry about that dear, the potion simply must have worn off earlier than planned." She watched as the girl thought about this, obviously not pleased at the thought. Medb couldn't lose this girl, she was the one and only link to the Goblin Castle. If she lost Jeaule, she lost everything. Jeaule was still eying her, obviously displeased.

"Then the potion you gave me doesn't even work as you told me." Jeaule shook her head slowly. "What a pity." The girl started to get up, she was going to leave. Medb wanted to kill the girl where she stood, but she couldn't and that killed HER a little inside.

She jumped out of her seat, more emotion in her voice than she would have liked, "I will make you another batch!" The girl had stopped mid-stand, shocked as Medb at her outburst. "It will be more powerful this time." Jeaule slowly sat back down, much to Medb's relief, though she wanted to rip the girl into a thousand small pieces for making her act this way.

"Ah…I see now," the girl all but purred. Medb's fingers clenched in on themselves, her fingernails cutting viciously into her skin to keep herself from hurling her magic at the girl. "You need me." Medb bristled, hating and respecting how the girl was acting all at the same time.

Though, reluctantly, she knew she couldn't do anything, as much as she hated to admit it, Jeaule was right. Her silence seemed to be more than adequate acknowledgement from Medb that she'd guessed right, for she leaned forward I her chair, hands laced together and resting on the table in front of her.

"Then tell me what you're planning, for I dearly want my prize."

**Knocking** on the door pulled Sarah's attention away from the small lesson that Jareth was giving her on healing minor wounds. She left Jareth on the dusk lit balcony, hand bleeding, to answer the door. Jeaule was on the other side of it as she'd guessed, but was smirking like a mad woman. She hadn't guessed on that.

"Cyric is okay then?" Sarah asked, though she didn't really need to by the look on Jeaule's face.

Her friend nodded, "For now, yes." Sarah frowned, what was there to be happy about that?

"For now…?" she asked quizzically. Jeaule's smile didn't falter.

"Yes, I still have duties to fulfill, so I can't take him yet, but he is alive." Sarah wouldn't have been pleased with that, she would have still been worried about him.

"Then why do you look so damn chipper?" Sarah asked as Jareth walked in from the balcony, wound on his hand healed over. Jeaule's grin spread, she looked like a school girl with a secret.

"Because Medb doesn't know what to do next." Sarah smiled with her now, though as she looked over to Jareth, she couldn't decipher his expression. He didn't seem as ready to be happy with that as they were. "She told me," Jeaule continued as she took a seat, "that I need to come up with a plan for separating the two of you by tomorrow or she'll kill Cyric."

Sarah gasped. "Then why the hell do you look so happy!?" To Sarah's further confusion, Jeaule chuckled.

"Don't you see?" Sarah clearly didn't. "It means that we know what she wants, that's how we can win this!" Comprehension dawned on Sarah as she realized that Jeaule was right, that was all Medb had ever tried for…breaking them apart. Why hadn't they realized that before? As long as they stay together, they can't lose!

Eyes giddy with happiness, Sarah turned to her friend, "So what are you planning?"

Jeaule shrugged like it was obvious, "Simple, we will come up with some bogus plan and take her down to the wire." Sarah nodded, finger resting on her lips as she thought it over.

"What about Cyric when she doesn't win the bet? That was the terms of you getting him." Jeaule's smile finally faltered a bit as Sarah said this.

"I know, that does worry me, but I figure, if Jareth is right, when she loses the bet, the gods are going to punish her immediately, so he will be ok." She bit at her lip nervously, her hand wringing in her lap. "Though, it might be nice to have a plan in action to save him on the last day, should it be necessary." Sarah looked over at Jareth again. He seemed a bit more positive now that there was a plan being formed, this was something he was good at.

"That should be easy enough to plan," he started as he sat down by them. "But we need to think of what spurious idea Jeaule is going to serve to Medb tomorrow first." They all agreed to that and got to work, knowing they only had twenty four hours.

**Morrigan** slumped back wearily in her chair, fingers working in hard circles at her temples. She felt Dagda's hands at her shoulders before she could call for him; he was always intuitive when it came to her. Which is why he'd refused to leave her alone with the orb since her last…incident, she though with another resigned sigh.

"They were so close," Morrigan growled as she tried to straighten so she could see in the orb again, but Dagda's strong hands held her as she was.

"I know love, but at least their minds are working in the right direction." His voice was even more soothing than his hands, which, despite her annoyance, were starting to relax her.

"Not FAST enough though!" It bothered her, the amount of worry in her voice. So much so that she knew, as well her dear husband would, that her temper wouldn't be far behind. "Is it really so DAMNED hard to say those three little words?" Finally, she thought with a bit of relief as the anger stirred within her breast. "If only I could-" she didn't get a chance to even think what she could because her husband's hands gripped harder at her shoulders, silently urging her to calm herself. Morrigan knew by now that the signal means that he's very close to dragging her away from the orb again, so reluctantly, she let her shoulders relax.

"There is nothing you can do and you know it," he said in that soft, lulling voice of his. "Interference by us would mean a forfeit and we can't have that." Her hands came up to rub roughly at her eyes.

"I know that, but the girl! When Jareth finds out-"

"If…" Dagda said a bit sadly.

But that was the last thing that Morrigan wanted to hear so she started again, this time more forcibly, "WHEN Jareth finds out…surely they could say 'I love you' then?" Dagda released her shoulders and sat down in the chair beside her, his eyes scanning the orb, not offering her any hope. With a huff, Morrigan kicked at the leg of his chair, "I just don't want Medb to win," she told him dejectedly, the heat of anger she'd built was lost to his silence.

Much to her chagrin, her husband laughed merrily beside her, "None of us do, my darling." She ignored him, letting her fingers trail over the orb before looking up at the two maps her eyes had been avoiding for weeks. One map everyone knew…and one that could be. She sighed again, as sign for Dagda to return to her shoulders, and closed her eyes, relinquishing her tired muscles to her husband. As his fingers gently kneaded at her shoulders, she muttered to herself, "We can only hope for what could be."

**(A/N: And another chapter down. At least I didn't leave you with too much of a cliffhanger this time! Though sometimes I don't know if that is always better or not. LOL Those who definitely made my week all the better with their reviews were:**

**angelbabe2000**** (beans spilled in the next chapter…promise. LOL), ****darklady26**** (I am so sorry I haven't been on much, everything has been hectic here, but I promise I'm ok!), ****DaydreamingPenguin**** (I am so beyond pleased that I have you as a fan monster!), ****Dillwave**** (boo for the story being close to over!!), ****Kaline Reine**** (I'm so happy you're up to date now!), ****Kerichi ****(How could I NOT throw a little AiW in?), ****notwritten**** (always and always!), ****phantome101**** (See…you and Morrigan would get along LOL), ****roguegambit**** (fingers crossed that you keep reading. LOL) and ****The Banshee's Tears**** (Only a few chapters left, so…yay…and boo.)**

**Note: BookwormBrea and saz89…you're scarin' me guys! Where are ya!? LOL**

**Remember to always check out my homepage, because I have the "Family Bonds" one shot spin off from this story as well as "The Diary of Jeaule Olincamp" and you don't want to miss those! Thanks again everyone, you make me love writing this story all the more!!)**


	29. Cruel Fate

**Disclaimer****I do not own rights to anything appearing in this story that already belongs to the Labyrinth and its respective owners. The only things I do hold right to are MY characters and MY locations. So if you don't recognize something from the movie…chances are…it's mine.**

**IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT****- so important, actually, that I will post this at both the beginning and end of this chapter to make sure that all of you see it. I am holding a contest of sorts for my readers and reviewers. The contest is a one shot, centered around either Jeaule, Cyric or Medb at any point in their lives (be it before, during or after this story). There are no real guidelines for it save for, stay in character. I want to see what you guys come up with. Entries can be sent to my email, which can be located on my homepage here under 'EMAIL'. If you are thinking of participating, please tell me so in your review of this chapter, thanks! The award for the winner will be a character based on them in the sequel of this story. You all have until Oct 15****th****. Have fun guys.**

**Reality**was a vicious thing and Sarah Williams finally understood that. It was a hard lesson to learn, but one without much choice involved. That last week seemed to fly by in a haze of half remembered events. She knew that somewhere in there, she and Jareth and received formal acknowledgement and blessings from the gods on their marriage, though they'd looked skeptical and worried.

Morrigan, actually, had looked ready to leap from her chair and throttle the two of them. That hadn't been a good sign that they might win and it had left Sarah sick ever since. Oh who was she kidding, she thought resignedly as she rested against the balcony, watching the gentle melting of colors as the sun rose on their last day, it was a HORRIBLE sign.

She'd stirred before the sun this morning thanks to her rebel stomach. Ever since Medb's attack on her, she still hadn't been able to get over the nausea that accompanied her mornings…sometimes even her evenings. Sarah shook it off, determined to see this sunrise when she had missed so many others. That's what the theme of today was going to be, absorbing all that she could of the Underground because there was a chance that she'd never get to after this day.

A gentle brush of fingers over her upper arms sent shivers through her and alerted her to her love's presence. He didn't say anything to her, merely pulled her back against the warmth of his body. As she rested her head against his chest she thanked the gods, for what seemed the millionth time, for giving her someone who understood how to deal with her so perfectly.

Her thoughts took a dark and bitter turn as she realized that it would be the very gods she was thanking that would be to fault if it was all ripped apart in the end. It was them who'd made the ridiculous pact with Medb. And why? Because they'd thought it would get rid of Medb and they didn't care to think what would happen if the silly little mortal they brought in couldn't figure it all out.

Sarah felt the sick rage within her swell as she admitted to herself that while the blame would rest squarely on the shoulders of the gods…the failure would be strewn across her own and Jareth's. Could the agreement between the gods and Medb have been so intricate that they couldn't figure it out? No, she gave in, her body starting to fall into its nauseous pattern; it wouldn't have been that difficult…they just couldn't figure it out.

Her stomach turned and her hand came out to catch the balustrade. The sun hadn't broken from behind the mountainous distance yet, she wasn't going to miss it. Sarah firmed her stance and willed her stomach into complacency. It wasn't working, but she wasn't about to give in, this was what could be her last damn day here, she was going to watch the sun rise with Jareth if she ended up needing to be sick right here on the balcony.

"Are you ok?" Jareth's voice was soothing and his hand running along her arm helped more than he knew. Sarah nodded as her mind trailed to other thoughts, realizing that its topic of late was not good for her stomach this early in the morning. Jeaule immediately jumped to the forefront of her thoughts, wondering yet again what the agreement between her great friend and Medb had been.

Jeaule absolutely refused to talk about it, blushing madly and averting eye contact whenever the subject had been broached that week. She told Sarah that it was far too embarrassing to tell her, for it was something that she would never, in a million years, actually be able to do. She'd told her, golden eyes alight with mischief, that as long as Medb believed that she would, it was all that mattered.

The sun was brilliant, she realized as her thoughts trailed off at its beauty, setting the sky to rosy pink that melted lazily into a fiery orange. As the sun continued its languid ascent into the sky, the soft baby blue of the daytime sky seemed to wash out the brilliant colors of morning. Sarah let herself sigh and relax when the sun broke from the mountainous horizon, though that only led to a violent revolt of her stomach and a mad rush to the bathroom.

But, she thought as she let herself empty, she'd seen that damn sunrise!

"Are you sure you're ok," Jareth asked a bit later, when her stomach had decided to relinquish its brutal hold on her.

"I'm fine, I've just been like this since Medb attacked me in my dreams." Jareth looked skeptical as she continued, not wanting to think anything was wrong with herself, "Remember? Healer Gorbe told me that nausea and stuff was common after an attack like that." She willed Jareth to simply agree with her, but her luck seemed to have run out at seeing the sunrise.

"I still think you should go see Healer Gorbe" he'd said to her as he wrapped an arm around her to lead her to the couch. "When you can walk on your own," he added, causing Sarah's heart to sink.

"That means you aren't going with me?" She'd never liked the doctors, even less so after her stint at the mental ward. Going alone to the Healer, however different it may have been from the doctor's of the Aboveground, wasn't something she wanted to do.

"I'm afraid that I have some business to attend to this morning, love." It was apparent that he was sorry, so she didn't push it, merely slumped back against the cushions dreading her trip to Healer Gorbe, for she knew she would have to go, Jareth would know if she didn't. But that didn't mean she couldn't complain a bit…she needed to, she thought sulkily.

"He SAID I would feel sick after that." Sarah crossed her arms sullenly across her chest, knowing this would only serve to irritate Jareth, though she couldn't seem to help it.

"I know love, but not weeks after the event." He'd answered so simply that she was ready to throw a pillow at him for not cooperating and arguing with her a bit. "Please," Jareth continued, kneeling in front of her, "just go make sure you're okay." The concern in his voice killed her rebellious attitude and she sighed, nodding her surrender. "You can take Jeaule with you." Her mood brightened instantly. Why hadn't she thought of that?

"Sorry I was a brat." He leaned forward and kissed her soundly.

"I wouldn't have you any other way." With that, he stood, obviously in a need to get somewhere. "I will be back in an hour…hopefully," he added wearily as he walked around the couch towards the door.

"What are you needed for?" She heard his quiet laughter as he turned back to her, leaning over the back of the couch to give her one last kiss.

"A king is needed by his people, even in times such as this." The smile on his face betrayed the sarcastic indifference in his voice. Jareth loved his people and his kingdom. So, even though it could possibly be their last day together, Sarah smiled and nodded.

"I will see you when you're done." She watched him go, wondering again what made someone so beautifully graceful and powerful…albeit a stubborn ass…want her? Sarah dwelled happily on these thoughts as she waited for Jeaule to show up. It didn't take her friend long; it seemed like only minutes later that Sarah heard the knock on the door and the gentle creak of it opening.

"Sarah?" Jeaule's quite voice was surprisingly heartening to Sarah, who called her friend over and told her what had happened that morning. "Then we need to get you to Healer Gorbe," she'd answered before Sarah had even told her that Jareth had made her promise to do just that. Sarah often forgot that Jeaule apprenticed with him and would know right off that she needed some form of treatment.

The two made their way down to Healer Gorbe's offices slowly, as Sarah still hadn't seemed to completely regain her equilibrium yet. When they finally made it to the cheerful little room where Cyric had been tended to some weeks ago, Sarah took a seat on the bed, thankful for the chance to be off her feet again. Jeaule returned with Healer Gorbe moments later, his shock of white hair on end as always and his eyes round with the curious worry that all doctors seemed to share.

"Jeaule told me what's wrong with you dear. There are only a couple simple tests that I'll need to run." Sarah cringed automatically, thinking needles would surely be involved, but her body relaxed as confusion took over when he brought out three bottles of liquid.

As he set them out on the table beside Sarah, Jeaule gasped, "You think it could be that!?" Sarah wasn't sure how to take the tone of her voice and her whole body tensed in confused fear.

"Could be what…!?" she exclaimed to her friend, who turned and realized she'd scared Sarah. While Sarah's heart thumped hard and worriedly in her chest, Jeaule scrambled to make her feel better.

"Oh no, no, no! Nothing bad, Sarah!" Jeaule cringed at herself for her slip of tongue. "I shouldn't have shouted like that, its just-" Jeaule trailed off, seemingly unable to find the words to continue.

"What? What is it?" Sarah asked, looking from bottle, to bottle, to bottle, wondering what each did. It was the second bottle that had sent Jeaule into her shocked exclamation.

"It just, that liquid tests for pregnancy." Sarah's body and mind froze as Jeaule said that. Could she possibly…? "We'll test that one first if you want." Jeaule's voice was in soothing nurse mode as her hand came out to rub Sarah's back. Sarah felt numbly shocked at the possibility that she could be pregnant, but couldn't deny, now that she thought about it, that it could very well be true. Sarah nodded to Healer Gorbe, who's long, angular face looked positively giddy, his bushy white brows looming over eyes glimmering with excitement.

"So how do you go about this?" Sarah asked Jeaule as Healer Gorbe pulled some of the liquid into something that looked quite like a medication dropper.

"Well, he will pool a few drops of the potion on your stomach and if it bubbles, then you're pregnant." Sarah was pleased by the simplicity…and painlessness…of the procedure. Healer Gorbe turned to her, the dropper hanging over her stomach.

"Are you ready my dear?" She nodded and held her breath as the potion fell in three drops to her stomach. Everything seemed to come to a halt as the three watched the small pool of potion and when the first bubble worked its way to the top, Jeaule broke the silence with a short cry of joy. Within moments, the potion had bubbled into vapor around them and Sarah stared down at the spot, her lips spread in a grin, unable to think of what to say. "I think a congratulations is in order," Healer Gorbe said heartily, his long, thin mouth drawn wide in a beaming smile that pulled Sarah out of her shocked silence.

Her heart was pounding much harder than before, but now it was from a much different mix of emotions. Joy, shock and a surprising, possessive worry coursed through her now at the thought of the life that was growing within her. She walked with Jeaule from the office after making Healer Gorbe promise not to say anything yet. The cheered old healer had sworn on his life before the girls had left.

"Oh Sarah, I'm so happy for you!" Jeaule was in a right state over the whole thing, beaming at Sarah and once putting a hand on her stomach before Sarah swatted it away laughing at her friend and teasing her that everyone would know before Jareth if she kept that up. "I can't help it!" her friend had delighted as they made their way out to the gardens a few hours later.

Jareth had been held up at the meetings with his people and had sent word via Blix that if it wasn't over by noon that he'd end it and spend the rest of the day with her. While it had saddened Sarah to hear, she happily realized that it gave her more time to think of how she was going to tell him that she was pregnant. It was then that she'd suggested walking in the gardens, to which Jeaule had cheerily stated that it would be wonderful for her in her condition.

"Stop talking like that," Sarah laughed as they made their way into the gardens. Her friend had been a delight to her today, going on and on about how wonderful it would be to watch after the baby, how cute it would be and anything else that popped into her racing mind. The two were chatting happily when it happened, their part of the garden seemed to go dark, as if a cloud had blocked the sun's rays from just this spot of their world.

It wasn't a second later that they heard a wickedly delighted laughter, "Well now, isn't that cheerful news." Sarah spun around and her eyes fell upon what she feared they would, it was Medb. She was unmistakable, her long onyx hair starting to billow behind her, cape-like, in the wind that was starting to build around the three, her eyes, like ice, boring into her very soul.

"What are you doing here?" The strength in her voice shocked even her, but she stood her ground and didn't let it show. "The guards will surely be on their way by now, your magic is known in this kingdom." Medb nodded serenely, her face a mask of indifference. Sarah's body tensed at her strange calmness, what was she so pleased about? She hadn't won yet.

"I don't think they'll make it in time anyways, LADY Sarah," she mocked as she bowed condescendingly.

"What are you talking about?" Sarah exclaimed, worry starting to knot hot and tight in her stomach. "We have until the end of the day." Medb's laughter was thick and derisive as her icy blue eyes danced with mirth.

"Oh the little hybrid must not have gotten the message…" Sarah refused to show any signs of weakness, but Medb seemed to know that they were there anyways. "You don't have until the end of the day." The knot in Sarah's stomach clenched as Jeaule stepped in front of her.

"This wasn't part of the plan Medb, I didn't know of this." Medb seemed disinterested in what Jeaule had to say, though Sarah was staring, shocked at her friend's vicious tone. Thankfully, Medb took that shock a different way.

"Yes, now you see, your handmaiden was working for me all along." Sarah played it off, making sure that her eyes burned as the wind picked up around them even more. "And you," Medb said, turning back to Jeaule, "your plan didn't seem to be working, so I made one of my own at the last minute."

"This breaks your rules, you know that. You told me you can't hurt her yourself, that's why you needed me and Erina! You don't want to lose the bet do you?" Medb had the audacity to pretend innocence.

"Why, my dear…I wasn't going to hurt her." Jeaule seemed unwilling to back down from defending her and Sarah knew that she would only get herself killed if she kept it up, so she pushed her friend aside.

"Okay then, what the hell do you want?" Medb simply held a hand to her forehead and watched the sun drift to its apex in the sky. Sarah heard her friend gasp in understanding too late…Sarah realized the mistake she'd made as Medb grabbed her arm.

"I was waiting for the timer to be up" she growled into Sarah's ear as she teleported them out of the Goblin Kingdom.

**Finally**, Jareth sighed, exasperated. He really hadn't expected it to take this long, but he couldn't simply tell everyone in his kingdom that had a problem worth getting all the way through to him to simply go away. It had been the first time since Sarah had been back…so two months…that he'd been able to see to them. Problems built up when you let them go that long, he thought as his hand rubbed hard at the back of his aching neck.

Now he was very much looking forward to a nice long soak in the tub with Sarah. Perhaps he could even talk her into one of those massages, that always took the tension right out of-.

"JARETH!!" Jeaule's scream ripped him from his lavender scented daydreams. When his eyes fell on Jeaule, his stomach plummeted, all his hopes for the day…perhaps his entire being…rushing from him. Her hair was disheveled, her eyes wild and frightened, her tear stained cheeks red with fury. "Jareth, she took her!" This time his heart clenched, as if some invisible being had punched him square in the chest.

"Jeaule, who took who…?" Please don't say Sarah's gone, was all his mind kept repeating, like a doomed mantra.

"Medb," Jeaule choked out. "She took Sarah." Jareth's vision tinged red and he didn't wait for further explanation. Perhaps he heard something like 'Wait, there's something you need to kn-' before he teleported away, but it wasn't as important as the dark little voice he hadn't heard in a long while, telling him to kill that bitch Medb for her impudence.

When the swirl of silver around him faded, he was standing before the dark and warped castle that belonged to the woman whose blood he wanted more than anything right now. Her guards came streaming out of the enormous, spike covered front gate, swords and magic at hand, but they were no match for the enraged Goblin King.

His magic lashed out, unconsciously, as the first guards approached him. With a slight flick of Jareth's wrist, the men went flying through the air, landing with ominous cracks on the boulder ridge some meters away. The next wave was upon him now, swords brandished and magic hurtling past his face. Jareth pushed the air forward in front of his body, causing the would-be attackers to fly violently back into the spiked door, impaling the troop without much effort.

Guards continued to pour from the front gate, past their twitching comrades that littered the spiked gates, but Jareth simply let the Darkness continue its work. Great silver arcs of destruction whipped from him, the black shaded magic leaving deep, hemorrhaging wounds across their bodies. Jareth didn't pause, merely let the Darkness rule his powers, cutting a path through the guards and into the castle, a trail of dead and dying men in his wake.

When he found her, she was sitting in her throne room, a smug, expectant look on her face as if she'd simply sat here waiting for him…which she probably had. She'd let all her guards die for no reason, Jareth thought, or was it the Darkness? Jareth wasn't sure anymore, the Darkness had ripped back into his soul with a ferocity he hadn't expected.

"Where is Sarah?" His voice was calm and level, though his soul was anything but. The torrent of fury in his veins was fueled when Medb pretended not to know who he was talking about, her brow slightly wrinkled as if trying to decipher his words. "Where is Sarah!?" He asked more forcefully, his shadowed magic starting to swirl threateningly around him. It did little to intimidate her though and she simply looked a bit pleased with herself. "You know who I'm talking about Medb," he shouted, the Darkness beginning to claw within him, demanding that he do something. Jareth didn't want the Darkness to have control, not like it had outside, so willed composure back…or at least he tried. "Now is not the time to play games."

Medb nodded, seemingly unafraid of the swirling tempest that he'd become, "You're quite right, so I won't." She leaned forward in her throne, her hands braced on her knees, a look of smug satisfaction on her face. "You want to know where she is then?" She spoke to him as if speaking to a child, that was the last straw for the Darkness within him who took sudden and violent control of his body, sending a burst of magic at Medb with enough force behind it to rocket her into the mountain view behind her. But his assault seemed to merely absorb into her, confusing Jareth and the Darkness and causing Medb to chuckle delightedly.

"Oh you can't hurt me now Jareth, I won the bet." His mind…or the Darkness…he cared little anymore, raged against that. "You're mine now." A feral snarl ripped from his lips that he knew hadn't originated from his own actions.

"I belong to no one, Medb!" Her laughter was rich and wicked.

"You will soon find out differently." Jareth ignored her, his mind seeking for the one answer he'd come here for.

"Where is Sarah?" He asked again. Medb didn't like that question at all. She leaned back in her throne, crossing her arms and pouting at him in a mocking, sarcastic way that made him want to strangle her.

"I try to have this wonderful moment with you and you just have to ruin it with talk of the hybrid bitch don't you?" He was not amused and she could tell, letting the act fade, that cold, calculated look slipped back onto her face as she waved a dismissive hand. "I killed her." His stomach dropped as his legs felt like soft rubber beneath him. He gripped his pendant, thinking surely…if she were dead…he would have felt it. Wouldn't he?

**Laughter** wracked her body. It was almost too good to be true, but there he was, near to falling on the ground in shock. She couldn't wait to give him the news that would send him crashing down. Overhearing that the girl was pregnant had been a most fortuitous accident on her part.

"No…" Jareth's voice was quiet, but ripe with a fury and rage so deep that Medb thrived on it. This is what she wanted, to get him so angry, that the Darkness took him over. She wasn't worried about her own well being, there was nothing he could do to her, she was immune to his magic thanks to winning the bet. "We haven't lost yet, she's still alive." Medb scoffed at his unfounded hope, it was admirable, but would get her no closer to her goals, it had to be eliminated. "I love her, I Chose her."

She laughed at him, she couldn't wait to tell him why they'd lost, "Be that as it may, you didn't fulfill MY clause in the bet." His uneven gaze fell on her, maddened and yet curious to know. "You never told each other 'I love you.'" His eyes lit with a dangerous passion as his back steeled, not what she wanted.

"Of course we did!"

Medb smiled and gave a short 'tsk', her finger slowly working back and forth like a contemptuous metronome, "Our present situation dictates otherwise."

"We said that we loved each other!" Jareth's outburst told her that he was back on the track that she wanted, he was becoming irate. It couldn't be working more perfectly…well…it could, she thought with a wicked pleasure.

"Ah, but did you say 'I love you' exactly?" He looked confused as his rage stoked higher behind his eyes. "You two had to say those exact three words to each other." It was like he'd been struck dumb, his face fell as he realized the simplicity of it…and that they indeed hadn't said those three words precisely. Watching Jareth at that moment was almost as cheering as a good torture.

Almost.

"So what exactly did you win?" There was an edge of defeat in his voice that pleased her almost as much as the Darkness that she could still see stirring in his eyes and tinting his magic. Seeing all the emotions coursing through him was like watching an intricate ballet, one that she intended to up the tempo of.

"Oh," she started airily, "you." She watched the cold anger wash over him and delighted in it, knowing it would be nothing to compare to what she'd see in a second. "Though I have to say ridding the Underground of that hybrid bitch and her spawn was quite delightful as well." His eyes snapped to her as she'd predicted they would.

"What do you mean?" She could see the dull realization in his eyes, he was waiting for her to confirm what he feared and she couldn't wait to.

"Surely you knew that she was pregnant?" Jareth seemed to close in on himself, his face went blank and his eyes turned to a cold, dead stare. He didn't answer her. "Oh how delightful," she quipped as she clapped her hands, elated with herself. "I believe I will let you think on that for a while, I'm bored with you for now." With a wave of her hand, she sent him to her room to let his rage fester and the Darkness to take hold.

Medb decided to head down to the dungeons for a little fun while she waited for Jareth to 'come to his senses' so to speak. She always loved the feel of PROPERLY constructed dungeons; she tried not to think of the horror that was Damien's. The small, narrow passageways, the dank, muggy air from being built underground, they were a veritable playground to her. It was always thrilling to hear the calls of those imprisoned, to feel their fingertips brush your skirts as she passed, calling out for her mercy.

It always made her laugh, as if she would do anything but let them rot in the cages she'd sentenced them to.

"Ah, the grand Queen decided to grace us with her presence." The disdain in the voice made her smile. She rather liked visiting Cyric in his little cell. It was always a joy to see him sniping at her from the other side of the metal bars. She'd caged him…and his magic…within that little ten by five room and had never lamented the choice, Jeaule could come to claim him whenever she wished.

"Ah, dear Cyric…I have so missed your wit." He snorted derisively from his seat on the rickety, stained bed. "Are you enjoying your new neighbor?" He lifted his head, a rough beard growing on his proud chin and dirt staining his skin, but the smile was still as brilliant as ever.

"More than I ever enjoyed yours." She wanted to reach through the bars and beat him bloody, but she'd promised Jeaule that he wouldn't be harmed when she came to collect him.

Lucky boy, she thought as she walked over to the adjacent cell. Seeing her dirtied and rumpled was as close as she would get to seeing her dead before the sacrifice, so it would have to please her for now. Though it didn't in the slightest because for all the dirt and grime in the cell…she was still sitting there, back straight, head held high as if she wasn't a prisoner sentenced to death.

"Enjoying yourself in there?" she asked with a high pitched, haughty tone. When those emerald eyes spun on her, Medb couldn't deny to herself that they scared her. They did, but there was powerful magic holding the hybrid's securely inside her cell, she couldn't touch Medb if she wanted to.

"Immensely," the hybrid answered, her lips splitting into an overly sweet smile. The girl's bravado irked Medb more than Cyric's, but in this case…there was nothing stopping her from lashing out at the girl. A wicked looking welt appeared on the hybrid's arm where Medb's magic had struck her.

"Your darling Goblin King has shown up…quite as fast as I had predicted." Medb leaned an arm against the bars; she needed to rub her win in the girl's face more than anything. Her pride had been wounded severely these past two months and the girl would pay for every second of it. "I hate to say that he thinks you dead…"

The girl jutted her chin out defiantly, as if to say 'he won't believe it', the pendant around her neck swinging as she moved. Medb had tried to remove the pendant from the girl's neck, but it had stubbornly refused to be removed, even burning Medb's hand in the process.

"Oh, I also let him know that you 'were' with child." That brought a flare of anger into those emerald eyes, but still, they stubbornly refused to turn to Medb…to show their anger and anguish. Medb shot upright from her languid leaning position, fire coursing through her with her want to see the girl suffer. "Perhaps I will have a child with him to make up for the one he's going to lose." That got to her. The girl sprang from the floor and attempted to lash out at Medb with her magic, though it merely absorbed into the bars.

That was all Medb had wanted to get from the girl and with a scathing grin at the enraged hybrid, she turned on her heels and left the dungeons, leaving the girl to wallow in the rage she'd ignited within her. She had a very irate Goblin King to attend to.

**Cyric** watched as Sarah stared down Medb's back. The girl had undeniable power and an impressive defiance against Medb, but it seemed to crumble once Medb was out of range. Sarah let her body go lax when Medb was out of sight and Cyric could see that she was silently weeping, though she was turned from him.

"Sarah…" he said through the bars that separated them. "…you know as well as I do that there's no way she's going to win this in the end." She turned to him, heading over to sit on the bed that was right next to his, though again, separated by the rusty metal bars. Seeing the tears from someone who was a so strong just a moment before was hard to handle, but he knew that she would have to shed them sometime.

"How could she not?" The defeat was another thing that Cyric hated hearing from her, but he couldn't deny her grief. "She has me trapped in this magic cocoon of a cell and Jareth is who knows where with the Darkness surely eating at him." He wanted to give her a quick smack to get her back to herself, that forceful Queen-to-be he'd met weeks before.

"You know that Jeaule is still out there." It seemed that Sarah hadn't thought about that factor, for her eyes lit with hope. "You can't tell me that she isn't trying to think of a way to get us all out of this." Sarah nodded as the tears dried in dirty steaks on her cheeks.

"She wouldn't leave us to this." He smiled, happy to see some of Sarah resolve coming back to her. "Can I ask you something?" Sarah asked, resting her forehead on the bars between them. "I don't know if you will be able to answer me, but I have to wonder." Cyric turned on the bed so he was facing her and nodded. "Why does she think she needs to sacrifice me?" It was the question he'd dreaded since he'd heard Medb teasing Sarah with it when they arrived.

With a heavy sigh, he reached up and wiped at the tear tracks on her face, "She was told by someone that if she sacrifices you, she will gain access to the Aboveground." Sarah's face fell into shock.

"But…can't she already go up there? I mean," she stammered, trying to think of what to say next, "Jareth can go up there, why can't she!?" Cyric gripped her hands so that they were both holding the bars between them.

"Yes, Jareth can go Aboveground, but only when called. It's part of his duty as Goblin King. He can't go up there other than in his owl form, unless called."

"So she thinks sacrificing me will gain her access?" Sarah was getting angry now and that was far better to Cyric than for her to turn into a weak, simpering female. "Why the hell would she think something as ridiculous as that?" He'd put two and two together when Medb had summoned the demon.

"Because she was probably told by Kindraa that sacrificing you, because of your rare magic it turns out, would gain her access." Sarah tilted her gaze up to his.

"Who is Kindraa?"

"I didn't think about her being the one Medb had talked to, not until I saw her come to take Erina away." Something dark and haunted crossed over Sarah's eyes, she seemed disturbed by the knowledge.

"Is Kindraa a Fae?" Cyric shook his head.

"Not by a long shot," he stated simply, knowing that Sarah wouldn't know anything about the demon. "She's a demon, very feared and not often sought out, but she has the ability to see paths."

"Paths?" Sarah interrupted. "Like she can see what might happen in the future?" Again, he nodded. Cyric let go of her hands, which were starting to hold his so tightly to the bars that they hurt.

"She doesn't usually help people unless she's bored or sees something in a path that might amuse her." Sarah huffed and pushed back from the bars.

"Apparently, my death interests her," she said petulantly. He frowned, a thought coming to him that had never been entertained before.

"Perhaps not." Sarah leaned towards the bars again, intrigued by this. "Perhaps it's Medb's downfall that intrigues her." Hope fired within him in a way it hadn't in a long while. "Think about it…" He saw that hope echoed in Sarah's brilliant green eyes.

"If Kindraa can see all these paths…why has Medb failed so badly in everything she's done to win?" That fire of hope blazed in both of them. "Wouldn't this Kindraa have told Medb exactly how to win?" Cyric smiled at her, thank the gods the woman wasn't a half-wit. "What is she going to do to Jareth in the meantime?"

"Well," this was another subject he hadn't really wanted to breech. "I don't know exactly what she'd going to do with him, but I know that she wants the Darkness to take over within him again." Sarah gasped at that.

"So she wants to use him to not only take his lands once and for all, but most likely to rage against the Aboveground should my sacrifice go as planned…?" He didn't need to nod, she saw the confirmation in his eyes and leaned back against the hard cell wall. "Let's hope he can hold out against her until Jeaule can figure something out then."

**(A/N: Another chapter down and I know there are several of you who will be pleased that the beans were finally spilled. Only 2 chapters left of this story, sad huh? I made this one a little longer than I had intended because I won't be able to update next week. It's my birthday next week and I will be on vacation so I will be unable to write until the week after. Sorry for the inconvenience. **

**On a happier note, I am pleased as punch to announce that this story has now hit 20,000 hits and 230 reviews. I can't express to all of you how deeply, deeply happy those numbers make me. For this being my first Labyrinth story, that is a significant accomplishment for me. So I want to thank all of you who take the time to leave me a review and brighten my days.**

**IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT****- so important, actually, that I will post this at both the beginning and end of this chapter to make sure that all of you see it. I am holding a contest of sorts for my readers and reviewers. The contest is a one shot, centered around either Jeaule, Cyric or Medb at any point in their lives (be it before, during or after this story). There are no real guidelines for it save for, stay in character. I want to see what you guys come up with. Entries can be sent to my email, which can be located on my homepage here under 'EMAIL'. If you are thinking of participating, please tell me so in your review of this chapter, thanks! The award for the winner will be a character based on them in the sequel of this story. You all have until Oct 15****th****. Have fun guys.**

**The wonderful people who reviewed last week and made me a happy gal are: ****angelbabe2000, ****darklady26****, DaydreamingPenguin****, Kaline Reine****, Kerichi****, miru88, ****notwritten****, phantome101, ****roguegambit****, salt06**

**Thanks guys, your support means everything to me!) **


	30. The Darkness Falls

**Disclaimer**: **I don't own the rights to anything from the Labyrinth, nor do I make money from this story. **

**ANNOUNCEMENT**

**I wanted to remind everyone again of the little contest of sorts that I have going. The contest is a one shot, centered around either Jeaule, Cyric or Medb at any point in their lives (be it before, during or after this story). There are no real guidelines for it save for, stay in character. I want to see what you guys come up with. Entries can be sent to my email, which can be located on my homepage here under 'EMAIL'. If you are thinking of participating, please tell me so in your review of this chapter, thanks! The award for the winner will be a character based on them in the sequel of this story. I'm pushing the due date to the 19****th**** so you guys can have more time and I will announce the winner at the end of the next chapter! Have fun guys.**

**Jeaule's** head was spinning by the next morning. She hadn't been able to get to Cyric or Sarah the night before since Medb was preoccupied with Jareth and making her crazy that she didn't know what was going on. That was just another thing on her mind, how long would Jareth hold up to Medb's constant taunting. She wanted to believe the best, but her mind was set on being horribly skeptical.

Thinking of Cyric in a dingy cell with no way to save him had made her skip breakfast that morning. Breaking him out would have been far too obvious, she just hoped that Cyric would agree with her thinking when she was finally able to get to him. And Sarah…gods only knew what Medb had done with her. Not knowing what had happened to her friend was enough to send anyone over the edge and made Jeaule realize that she wouldn't be able to handle this alone. It was also the reason she stood, taking a bracing breath, in front of the door to Maesia's suite.

The door opened before her a moment later and she heard Maesia's lilting voice drift from her private balcony, "Jeaule! Dear, come out here and join me for breakfast!." Her stomach sank at the happiness in the woman's voice, sickened by the thought of what she was about to tell her. Then morning light hit her like a thousand little needles, teasing her that she'd wasted a whole day, when she stepped out into the cool morning air. "Well, there you are. I thought you'd never join me," Maesia quipped merrily, buttering a sweet muffin as Jeaule sat down in the plush bistro chair across from her.

"I…" She didn't know how to tell her that her son had been taken hostage. Jeaule knew that Maesia was aware of the bet, so surely the cheery woman before her knew that it had ended the night before? Wasn't she worried of the outcome? Wasn't she wondering why Jareth and Sarah weren't throwing a grand party right now for their winning of it?

"Whatever is wrong child?" Apparently, she didn't.

"It's Jareth and Sarah milady." Her quiet, troubled tone gave Maesia the amount of panic Jeaule thought she ought to have. Her brilliant green eyes darkened dangerously as she laid the butter knife and muffin down slowly before her.

"What about them?" Her voice was cautious, her hair looking ever more the fiery inferno for her building anger and worry.

"The bet…" Jeaule brought Maesia up to date on all she'd been left out of, leaving out that Sarah was pregnant, the woman looked ready to kill already without that knowledge.

"Why, exactly, was I kept out of the loop on all of this?" She asked darkly, now pacing the stone floor of her balcony. "Didn't you three think I might have been able to help with the Erina situation?" Jeaule's body slumped, knowing Maesia was right. "You know, being your foster mother DOES come in handy at times." That comment stopped Jeaule dead, though Maesia's rant continued.

She was their foster mother?

Maesia had never told them that before. Had merely taken them in when their mother had died. Jeaule knew that since their father had died before he'd had a chance to hold them and they had no other family once her mother had passed, but never before had it been uttered that Maesia had made what they had all these years a formal fostering.

It made sense now that she thought about it, Maesia's voice rippling now only in the back of her mind. She HAD always wondered why the two little eight year old girls hadn't been stationed in the servants quarters, but in the far end of the family wing. Of course, Maesia hadn't adopted them outright, she was the queen, she couldn't, but she'd cared for them, given them more than they ever would have had without her.

And now ALL her children were in danger…well one was already dead, two were in danger now, for Jeaule knew she would have to go before Medb again and gods knew what she would have to do to save Sarah and Jareth.

"Well, now that Jareth has been fool enough to get himself captured, it puts me in charge." Maesia's declaration drew her from her daydreams. "You weren't listening to half of what I just said, but never mind that now. Once this is all over, all THREE of you will hear enough of it." Jeaule wanted to smile at that, but her face seemed intent to frown.

"What do you think we should do? I know I can get Cyric out safe enough, but Jareth will be under her constant attention…and Sarah-"

"Gods only know what that beast of a woman has done to that girl." Jeaule nodded and tried to think of something as Maesia, still pacing, did the same. "You go get that Cyric of yours, you might be able to find something out about Sarah while you're there. Write off helping Jareth right now, there's nothing that you can do for him at the moment." Jeaule opened her mouth to argue, to tell Maesia that there HAD to be something that they could do, but she was shushed before she could utter a syllable. "No! There is nothing you can do for him right now! Listen to me," she said, her voice calming as she crossed to Jeaule, placing her hands on her shoulders. "You need to see if we are able to help Sarah, for she is the one in danger right now."

"I know, but-"

"No buts, do as I say Jeaule." Jeaule knew that she was letting her emotions get the better of her right now and viciously wished that she hadn't let them all out of their cage. "You know that Sarah needs you more than Jareth right now. Sarah is the one in danger, not my son." She knew that Maesia was right, but she didn't want to not help Jareth. "Medb isn't going to kill her brand new toy that she fought so hard to win."

With a heavy sigh, Jeaule knew what she had to do, "All right, I will go to Medb and get Cyric out, hopefully she lets something slip about what has happened with Sarah." Maesia smiled, cupping Jeaule's face and running her thumb lightly over her cheek.

"That's my girl." That comment…plus the promise of a prepared Goblin Army when she needed it…bolstered Jeaule during her wait for Medb. Jeaule couldn't believe she was being made to wait for this woman AGAIN. This treatment was getting old and Jeaule hoped that one day she'd be able to 'thank' Medb for it personally.

When Medb finally did swan in, she looked immensely pleased with herself, easing herself down into her favorite chair with a mocking disdain for anyone that wasn't her. She raised her hand, waving it dismissively in Jeaule's direction as if she'd only just noticed she was there, "I suppose that you're here to claim Cyric?" Jeaule nodded when Medb turned to her, not trusting herself to utter a single word. "Well, he's down in the dungeon, you may go fetch him if you wish."

"Thank you, Majesty," she replied, though it burned her tongue to do so. Medb seemed pleased that Jeaule still showed the respect though and Jeaule gave herself a mental pat on the back.

"Forgive me for not accompanying you, but I have more important things to do with my time right now." Medb stood from her chair with much more purpose than she'd sat in it and Jeaule realized that her actions had been a little test for her, which she'd passed by still giving Medb her honorific though she wasn't in her service anymore. Before she slipped from the door, she turned back with a little smile for Jeaule. "There is someone down there that might not be pleased to see you though." Sarah… "You can have fun with her if you wish; her powers can't pass the bars." With that, Medb swept from the room with a rustle of her silken gown.

Jeaule had to stand there a minute, absorbing the whirlwind that had been Medb. She'd been so frightened for Sarah's well being when Medb had arrived and during the whole two minutes she'd sat there with that gloating smile that Jeaule knew had to be plastered there twenty four hours a day now. A Jeaule gathered herself back up to leave, she couldn't help but wonder why Medb let her know that Sarah was down there? Was it simply unavoidable? Perhaps she was in a cell near Cyric's? Or was it simply a sinister attempt to have even more people treat Sarah like shit? With a frown, Jeaule figured Medb was twisted enough that it would be a little bit of both.

Making her way down into the dungeon was like walking into a crypt, though surely this was worse. From the smell of the air, Medb must frequent the place, for it was definitely well sanitized, but her scent seemed to linger. It was probably sprayed in the cells frequently to keep the prisoners in a constant state of fright, wondering when she would appear. While Jeaule might admire the tactic if the prisoners were indeed villainous, she knew for a fact…as did everyone else in the Underground…that Medb took prisoners on whim and this was simply wicked.

"Jeaule…?" Cyric's voice whispered hopefully from mere meters in front of her. She rushed to his cell, shocked and maddened when she saw him. Clearly, Medb had been near to starving him since she shoved him in here, nor had he been given the chance to shave…or bathe she figured, forcing her nose not to curl. "Sarah…Sarah, wake up, Jeaule is here."

"She's really okay!?" Jeaule's voice was desperate to hear the words she'd been starving for since Medb and Sarah has vanished from the gardens.

"Yes, I'm really okay, Jeaule." Sarah came into view and relief crashed through Jeaule's soul. Jeaule opened Cyric's cell and let him out, hugging him close, his distinctly non-bathed smell forgotten. Knowing that seeing Cyric and herself reunited was the last thing Sarah needed to see right now, she kept it brief and from the look in Cyric's eyes, he approved.

"Why do you look like crap and she seems so much better cared for?" Cyric chuckled weakly at that while Sarah's face fell into resentment. Jeaule realized too late that this was yet another bad thing to say.

"Of course I'm better taken care of," she spat before suddenly gripping the bars and grinning faintly. "I have to be nice and healthy for my sacrifice." Jeaule was taken aback by that and ran towards the door to Sarah's cell.

"Then we have to get you out of here too!" Strong hands grabbed her shoulders before she could reach the metal bars of Sarah's cell.

"We can't free her yet Jeaule!" Jeaule spun on him, shocked that he would suggest anything BUT freeing Sarah. The look in her eyes must have spoken far louder than anything she could have said for she heard Sarah's voice, calmer now, beside her.

"He's right Jeaule, you can't touch the bars of the door to my cell. I'm sure she could touch the others, don't you think Cyric?" Sarah received a slight nod as Jeaule continued to be slightly confused.

"But…" Realization dawned at last. "Gods, she's a bitch."

"What are you talking about," Cyric asked, a frown in place.

"Medb, she told me that Sarah was down here, it was a final test of my loyalty." Jeaule laughed as she finally understood what Medb had been up to with that coy little remark of hers. "She wanted to see if I would try to free Sarah."

It was a surprise to see Sarah grin, "Well you have to admit she's very good at her little mind games. Thank the gods all of us combined can outwit her." There was a tone of playful sarcasm in her voice that made Jeaule grin as well.

"So what are we going to do about Sarah then?" Cyric's brow furrowed again before he answered.

"Well, Medb placed magic sensors on the bars of Sarah's cell door, so if you open it, she will know and I don't think it's a stretch to say she would surely kill Jareth if her plans go awry." Cyric seemed at a loss, his hand coming up to sweep unruly hair from his face.

"But why can't he simply protect himself, he's far more powerful that Medb!" Cyric and Sarah shared a tortured glance.

"He can't protect himself anymore," Sarah answered dully. "Medb is immune to his magic now since she won the bet." Each new bit of information was more devastating than the last and Jeaule almost didn't want to know anymore.

"So what do we do…?" She asked, feeling quite useless. Sarah and Cyric both seemed sickened by what they were about to say, but Sarah nodded for Cyric to go ahead.

"We have to wait until Jareth is falling under Medb's plan." Jeaule's eyes shot wide.

"You can't be serious…!? You two WANT him to fall to the Darkness!?"

"Of course not!" Sarah shouted, visually fighting to remain calm. Jeaule felt instant guilt at her outburst and forced her nerves back into the abyss. "But she needs to feel triumphant, that's the only way she will be distracted enough not to pay attention. There is no other way." Jeaule was frustrated, yes, but for her friend's sake, she kept her tongue in check and nodded.

"Then we will think of a way to bypass the sensors in the meantime." Cyric perked up, bringing a small marble sized crystal from his pocket.

"This will help when the time comes." Jeaule glanced at it, even Sarah didn't seem to know about this. Neither had to ask what it was, it was obvious they were curious. "It's something I cooked up while in here," he told them, rolling the orb around on his palm. "Medb tried to block my magic while in that cage, but she wasn't completely successful. She always underestimated my power." He seemed more pleased by that than anything.

"So what is it?" Jeaule asked, keeping her other question, 'Then why didn't you groom yourself?', to herself. Cyric's eyes twinkled at her, he always knew what she was thinking, she thought with a smirk.

"It's a sensor of my own, it glows red and heats up whenever Medb is getting close. And I didn't groom myself because then she would have known I could use my magic and would have put harsher restrictive spells on the cell." She blushed…he really had known what she was thinking. To gloss over her embarrassment, she turned to Sarah, forcing her hands not to touch the bars.

"We'll be back for you," she said with such force, she could have convinced even the most skeptical. Sarah smiled back at her as she sat back down on the worn bed.

"I know."

**Medb** walked back into her room, wondering if the girl would fall for the bait and try to rescue the little hybrid…or if she was truly loyal and would simply let the girl rot there. Either way, Medb would be pleased. If she tried to free her, then she would have three wonderful toys to play with in the dungeon, if not, then she knew she had a great asset on her side.

Jareth was standing at the window, his hands worrying the pendant hanging from his neck, his face a vivid showing of vicious anger. Medb took that as a good sign that he was falling further and further into the Darkness and figured one more little nudge in the right direction couldn't hurt.

"I'm back dear," she called out in a sweet voice that even made HER a little nauseous. A non-committal grunt was all the acknowledgement she received, so she walked over to him, the silken waves of her dress catching the sunlight as she stalked over to Jareth. He didn't budge as she got closer, not a single thing to even show that he knew or cared that she was there.

It made her smile.

When she was close enough, she tormented further still by running a finger along his cheek. In a lightning quick movement, Jareth gripped her wrist and spun to face her. The look in his eyes actually frightened her, though she knew he couldn't hurt her if he wanted to, but it was the fact that she couldn't pinpoint the anger in his eyes that scared her the most. Was he indeed falling to the Darkness or was he simply a very pissed off Goblin King?

As she wrenched her wrist from his grasp she decided that it simply didn't matter at the moment. She knew that as long as he stayed mad, the Darkness would take hold eventually…that was its nature. And so, she prodded again at the vicious beast before her, fury replacing the fear she'd felt a moment before.

"I bet you never treated your filthy human like that," she hissed at him, preening at the fire in his eyes before she turned her back to him to show she wasn't scared. "Good thing for her that she never had the chance to see this side of you. I'm glad I spared her of that…and of the burden of life." Medb turned back to him, a devilish smile on her lips. "I don't think she would have been able to carry that child anyways, she was far too soft."

That had been the trigger she'd hoped for, his magic lashed out so suddenly that if she hadn't been protected from it, she would have surely perished. While the blast of dark magic left her unscathed, half of her belongings in the room didn't fare as well. Tattered bed clothes, splintered furniture and shattered china littered the floor around her.

It infuriated her just as much as it pleased her to see. When her gaze finally rested on Jareth again, his lips were quirked in a smug smirk that she wanted to rip off of his face, but he said nothing to jeer her further, merely left her to her destroyed belongings. She let him go, for she knew the next day would see her with the upper hand again.

And she couldn't have been more right.

When the crowns for their coronation that evening were brought in, Jareth looked as if he'd just swallowed a Whidle. That expression alone more than made up for having to spend all of last night fixing her belongings. But she received a far different feeling when she saw the look on his face when he actually got a good look at the crowns. The recognition on his face was enough to have her stomach flipping uncomfortably.

"What is your problem?" His eyes never peeled from the golden crowns resting on the red velvet pillow.

"I've seen those before," he commented airily as his fingers ran over his pendant again.

"You couldn't possibly have…I commissioned those myself, they're a one of a kind pair." His eyes told her something different and severely discomfited her. She waved to one of her guards, not wanting to be in Jareth's company anymore. "Take him away and have him dressed for the coronation tonight." Ease didn't return to her when Jareth left, she merely seemed to fall further and further into nerves she cursed were even there.

There was no reason to worry now, Sarah was still in her cell, Jeaule had proven herself loyal there, and Jareth was under her power. It was all going as it was supposed to. Then why was she feeling so very nervous now? Wanting to rid herself of the feeling that left her on the verge of a meltdown, she opted for her favorite pastime, goading Sarah. Grabbing her new crown, she set off for the dungeons.

Seeing the little hybrid curled up on the dingy little bed gave her more and more satisfaction every time she saw it.

"Wake up!" A wicked delight coursed through her when the girl startled awake, knocking her knee against the bars that used to separate herself and Cyric. "Good afternoon…I see you're losing track of what time of day it is," she said with a grin. "How delightful." Sarah didn't say a word to her, but that was of little consequence, she rarely did anymore. She held up the crown so Sarah could see it, the torchlight from the hallway glinting off the many gems. "Jareth is coming along nicely, we're going to exchange these tonight at our coronation." She brought a hand to her breast and gasped in an overly dramatic move. "Oh, but you wouldn't know…we're combining our kingdoms…he's going to be such a good husband." Medb saw the girl's eyes glistening and knew, with a soaring of her spirits, that she'd accomplished what she'd came down here for. With another mocking grin she laughed and sashayed her way from the dungeon.

**Sarah** waited until Medb was out of sight to clear the tears from her eyes. Anymore, she knew that's what that wicked woman came down here for, so she simply delivered them without feeling. A burning against her chest had her gripping her pendant for what seemed like the millionth time since she'd been thrown in the cell.

She couldn't help but wonder why the damn thing had felt like it was burning through her flesh, though it wasn't. Was it a side effect of the magic chamber that Medb had tossed her in? It very well could be. She couldn't do any magic in here so she figured, the pendant being magic, that might cause it to do something weird like that.

Or was it the other thing that had caused her to lose sleep?

Could it possibly be happening because Medb wasn't actually lying to her? Could it be because Jareth was indeed falling to the Darkness? After all, the pendant was an extension of his own magic. It stood to reason that if he were falling to the Darkness that it might burn like that against her skin.

Feeling almost dirty for thinking it, Sarah shook off the dread that had filled her so, not wanting to think Jareth so weak. She leaned back against the wall, diverting her thoughts to when Jeaule might come and save her.

Surely it would be today? Medb had said that the coronation was tonight, so Jeaule had to come today, Sarah thought as she let her head fall back against the dank wall of her cell.

She had to….

**They'd** been gazing into Cyric's orb all day. Not the marble sized one of course, for that had merely been constructed to glow and heat, but a far large one that he'd conjured up with Maesia's help. The three had been watching everything that had been going on in Medb's kingdom that day and didn't like what they saw.

"She moved the coronation up!" His love had been in knots since leaving Sarah the day before, but had calmed slightly once they'd come back to Maesia and she'd told them there might be a way past Medb's sensors.

"Yes, I know dear," Maesia soothed. "We have to act now or all will be lost. I will go prepare the army, when I get your signal, we will march." Cyric watched as Maesia left the room, knowing that the woman had never seemed so in charge in her life. Gone for now was the content and happy mother she'd been all her life and right now an angry lioness was in her place. He thanked the gods for her help as he and Jeaule teleported to Medb's lands.

"Why didn't you just take us straight into the dungeons, surely there was something there you remember enough to have used as an anchor?" Cyric shook his head at Jeaule, gripping her hand and leading her into the growing crowd.

"No one can teleport into the dungeons directly, we have to get there ourselves." His heart pumped as they blended into the massive crowd, working their way towards a door that would lead into the castle. He had to rely on the fact that Jeaule had proven herself loyal to get them by if they were caught on their way to the dungeons, but sincerely hoped that they would make it without such complications.

Surely Medb, thinking Jeaule loyal, wouldn't think that anyone else would know of Sarah still being alive and would feel quite safe having all of her guards outside the palace to control the gathering crowds. At least, that's what Cyric was hoping for. As they finally managed to bolt through one of the castle doors unseen, he was starting to think he may have got his wish after all.

"Gods, we are so lucky," he muttered as they made their way down to the unguarded dungeons. Jeaule snorted, quite unladylike to his pleasure, beside him.

"Lucky she's full of herself you mean." He chuckled as they crept down the dungeon stairs, still wary that there might be a guard in waiting. When no one presented themselves, they dashed down the hall to Sarah who looked beyond delighted to see them.

"Just stay back from the bars for a second, Maesia told us about this, but no one is really sure if this is going to work." Sarah gave a half grin and backed up.

"I love how reassuring you are, Cyric." The three laughed as Cyric and Jeaule pooled their magic together into a wall that enveloped the bars of Sarah's cell. The idea…and brutal hope…was that their magic would allow them to open the door while holding in Medb's warning spell that was weaved into the bars. If they could contain her magic within their own, they might have a chance.

When their magic encased the bars as well as was able, Jeaule sighed as she reached her hand out for the door, "Well, now or never." He watched, his stomach in knots, as Jeaule pulled the door open without resistance. The three didn't waste time cheering over it, but jetted out of the dungeons, knowing that if their magic hadn't worked, someone would be down there very soon to check things out.

**Jareth** sighed as they walked nearer and nearer the roaring crowd, touching his pendant and praying that the burning meant that Sarah was alive. Safe…he didn't know, but gods, let her be alive. He had to hold onto that hope, it was the only thing that had been fighting back the Darkness these past days.

It was cruelly true that the Darkness had indeed been clawing at him the past few days, but his hope that Sarah was okay and that he would be able to find a way to save her that had kept it at bay. He knew he would never be able to hurt Medb now, thanks to the stupid bet, so he simply had to pretend that she was getting what she wanted. He had to let her think that the Darkness was eating away, feeding and feasting on the building anger within him.

It hadn't been terribly hard to act, but it HAD been remarkably hard to hold back the Darkness.

It had been seeing those crowns that morning that had made him realize that Sarah had been right to think that the scene carved into that headboard was going to play out. The crowns had been perfect matches to the ones carved so intricately into that wood. He could only hope that Sarah would really be in that crowd to play her part.

As he and Medb walked out of the castle, there was the crowd as it had been depicted in the headboard, half the crowd cheering and the other half weeping at the knowledge of what's to come. Truly, Jareth wanted to join the latter half, but he had to be strong and hope that Sarah would be out in the massive crows somewhere.

They made their way up onto the stand where the coronation would be held, stationed just above the crowd. That's when he spotted it, one single throne. It made him cringe inside, knowing that Medb had always planned to make him nothing more than a pet to her. It made him all the more sickened to realize that she would demean him further by demoralizing him in front of the colossal crowd, but that's what the headboard had already told him, so he took a bracing breath and stepped onto the stand, to the cheers and wails of the crowd before him.

"My people…and soon to be people," Medb added with a smirking mirth. "I welcome you here today in what promises to be one of the most remembered days in all of the Underground!" The crowd roared and cried in equal measure. "Today you will bear witness to the joining of two of the greatest kingdoms in the Underground!" This time the cheering was so loud it all but drowned out those on their hands and knees sobbing in the crowd.

Medb smiled wickedly over the crowd, apparently not taking notice to those who were…less than eager for what was to happen. With a sweep of her skirts she turned and took her seat on the throne, smirking at Jareth, whose eyes had been scanning the crowd for a sign of Sarah.

"Come here..." It had been a command from her, not a request. Any other time, if she hadn't been immune to his powers, he would have killed her for that. But now, hoping that if he did so, Sarah would be okay, he had to let the headboard scene play out. When he was in front of her, he noticed that Medb's face was contorted with a ferocious glee that churned him to the very depths and made the Darkness within him scream for her blood. "Place your pendant at my feet."

His whole body, the Darkness included most vehemently, wanted to lash out at her, but the need to let events happen had him placing the pendant at her feet. He heard most of the crowd behind him roar in pleasure at the sign of submission and the other half wailed miserably, most likely thinking him weak. That made the Darkness within him cackle all the more.

_You're showing them how weak you are!_

It was the first time he'd heard the Darkness since before Sarah had forced it back to its cage and it didn't bode well for him.

_No indeed it doesn't. Why not just let me have control? I could show these miserable fools that you are no weakling._

He heard Medb snap her fingers, her guard placing the bejeweled crown on her head as the Darkness screamed within his head.

_Are you going to be weak and let her get away with this!?_

The crowds ovations and moans became background music as he heard Medb tell him to kneel before her. The Darkness was becoming more and more irate…and more and more vocal.

_Don't you DARE kneel before that whore! Stand back up! Stand UP I say!_

Jareth, with every measure of control he had over his body, forced himself not to listen and kneeled before Medb.

_She will make you her trained DOG, performing for her amusement! Is that what you want!? When it could be you and ME conquering all!?_

He could feel the Darkness clawing within him, a frightened and enraged animal restrained to its mental cage as the crown came closer and closer to his head.

_NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!_

"NOOOOOOOOOO!" A vicious cry ripped from the crowd at the same time as the Darkness cried out and the golden circlet that had been meant for his head, hit the ground at his feet.

**(A/N: There's yet another chapter, hope you enjoyed. And oh…I lied, there are two more chapters after THIS one. So…two more chapters to look forward to my pretties.**

**Those who always give me reviews to look forward to are:**

**Angelbabe2000**** (spilled beans rock!), ****darklady26**** (the damn thing is taking forever to bloom!), ****Dillwave**** (now, now…don't cry. There's a sequel!), ****Kaline Reine**** (can't wait to read your contest entry!), ****Kerichi**** (You'll probably be my only Cyric entry! LOL Sweet! And yes…I am just as wicked as you are! LOL), ****LDeetz**** (Definitely going to be a sequel…and even have ANOTHER story thought out that I will write after that!), ****Miru88**** (you're entry was adorable…I had to say it again!), ****notwritten**** (always more!), ****phantome101**** (yeah, I wasn't very coy about it. LOL), ****roguegambit**** (I wish Jareth COULD hurt her! And yes, read LDeetz thing…there's more comin!), xfae-princessx (Can't wait to read your contest entry!**

**Thanks again guys, love you much as always!)**


	31. Destiny's Showdown

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own anything having to do with the Labyrinth, those belong to Jim Henson and the other various owners. I do however, very much lay claim to my original characters within this story. I don't earn money from this, merely the reviews from my readers, which are worth more than gold to me!**

**Morrigan** was sure that her head was going to implode. How had those two imbeciles lost!? Had the task before them really been that difficult? No…of course not, she steamed silently, pacing violently in front of the orb. The figure of Jareth walking up onto the stand made her vision fall to red.

"At least your headboard isn't going to waste." Dagda's words held little comfort for her. Morrigan twisted, turning to face her husband, who was sitting in a chair on the opposite side of the room, peeling an apple and looking quite content. How could he!?

"That doesn't cheer me…if they were too dense to say 'I love you' I'm not holding my breath that they'll actually think to act out that prophecy I laid RIGHT under their ignorant noses!"

Her husband merely smirked at her rage as he cut of a bit of juicy apple and slipped it between his lips. She took that as his cue that he was no longer interested in fueling her temper further and spun back to the orb. It killed her, the goddess of WAR, to have to sit here, simply watching. Usually, she'd be able to know the outcome of any fight, taking a side and tipping the sway of battle in favor of her champion, but this…this was torture. This battle was frustratingly blocked from her omnipotence and it was stoking her temper to a melting point.

"If they can't complete this dance…I'll kill them both myself." She heard her husband's gentle laughter from his spot across the room and her fingers gripped the orb ever tighter.

"You know you won't do that," he chuckled, a bit of apple in his mouth from the sound of his slightly slurred words.

"Shut up you jovial old fool! Not EVERYTHING goes well you know," she answered lovingly, for she did indeed, under the fire of her anger, appreciate her husbands encouragement and though her words still held the bite of that anger, she was sure her husband knew that as well. Letting thoughts of her husband's ill-timed optimism, she let her mind settle once again on the blind annoyance of the battle to come.

It had all been so simple, she thought as she watched Sarah parting her way through the crowd, Jeaule and Cyric right behind her. How had it fallen apart? Sarah was stepping over the sobbing, prostrated goblins, a look of terror on her face that Morrigan knew was because of her remembered dream. Yes, Sarah…things are happening just like that, but fear not…walk forward.

The girl in the orb did just that and Morrigan loved her for it. The girl's bravery was paramount to her success and Morrigan could only hope that it would hold out. Finally, two goblins looked up long enough to recognize their Lady Sarah, gaped for a split second in the dawning realization that she wasn't dead as everyone had been told and then gripped her arms to begin dragging her through the crowd. The two goblins parted the crowd allowing Sarah a pathway through the dense celebration, leaving Jeaule and Cyric swallowed by the crowd in their wake.

No one in the crowd, save for an odd goblin here or there, seemed to notice their passing, they were so enthralled by Medb's words, but now she was sitting and Sarah was getting closer still….

Morrigan cringed as the crown of gold and jewels was placed on Medb's head and screamed in outrage when Jareth kneeled before her, even though Morrigan knew it would have to happen. She'd made the stupid headboard hadn't she?

Her blood was racing, pulse thumping to the rhythm of Sarah's footsteps as she inched her way further and further through the crowd, now pushing and clawing her way through the crowd as it thickened near the front. Her heart was crying out for the girl to remember what she had to do, her skin gone damp with anxious fury.

As she watched the orb, she saw Sarah's eyes go dark as the girl realized what was happening, watched the mute scream erupt from Sarah's mouth and her power blast from around her, tossing the crowd high into the air and effectively clearing a ten foot circle around herself.

A cry of elation tore from Morrigan's lips as the crown that had been meant for Jareth's head dropped to the ground at his feet, startled out of Medb's now trembling hand. There was still hope! As if to say 'I told you so…' the loud crunch of her husband biting into his apple sounded behind her…she couldn't help but smirk at his cheek.

**Sarah** knew nothing and saw nothing but the devastating scene before her. Not even the strangled cries from those her magic had so very forcibly flown out of the way registered to her. Though the tears of those who had been sobbing had fallen around her and the crowd they'd soared over, she hadn't felt them. All she knew was Jareth had been kneeling before Medb…the crown mere inches from his head…and she had reacted.

Perhaps it wasn't exactly what the headboard had shown her, but it was magic after all. Resting on that hope, Sarah watched the rest of the crowd part before her, most likely in fear of being the next ones tossed fifty meters or from the thrill of seeing her alive. Sarah didn't care of their motives, whatever the cause, there was now an open path between herself and Medb. Nothing could stop her now, not the muffled cries of Jeaule and Cyric, still stuck back in the crowd, not even the stunned and relieved look on Jareth's face distracted her from her target.

No, her world was now centered on the disgusted and enraged face of Medb.

**That**_ couldn't possibly be her._ The Darkness raged within him. _She was supposed to be dead! It was one less thing for me to bother with!_

But Jareth didn't listen. She was alive, was all he could think. His mind, in shock, could repeat little else.

_It's not her! It couldn't be! Kill her! Kill the imposter! _Ignoring the Darkness once more, he grabbed his pendant back off the ground, catching Medb's attention, though she didn't dare take her eyes from Sarah's oh so still form. It was warm to his touch. As he looked up, Sarah's hand was on her own pendant as well. It really was her.

She's alive.

"Put that back…" Medb's voice was slow and smooth, like liquid candy over his senses as she pointed to the ground where the pendant had lain, but he didn't miss that it had been a direct order. He couldn't play the part anymore. There was no point to keep his charade up; his reason for doing so was now alive and well standing before him.

"No." Jareth stated, though it had been harder to do so than he would have hoped. His words might have been quiet and meek, but they were enough that Medb knew he wasn't hers and in that moment something within her snapped.

Jareth watched in building dread as Medb's face fell into shadowed, frightening lines, "Did you not hear me?" Jareth took a deep breath and forced his mouth to move, his words seeming to catch within himself.

_I will not let you…._ He'd let the game go on too long, the Darkness had more of a foothold than he'd hoped. All he could hope for was that the foothold was enough to fight.

"I heard you," he managed, though every muscle in his body felt weaker for it. Jareth could feel the waves and vibrations of anger and magic, mixed together indecipherably, rippling towards him like water on the air.

"Very well then, I should have done this in the beginning…the Aboveground be damned!" And then it happened, almost faster than he could register what was happening, Medb's arm flung out to her side in a wide arch, sending an assuredly deadly crystal speeding towards Sarah. Jareth tried in vain to throw out a barrier to stop it, but the lethal crystal slipped through his guard as if it weren't there.

He'd forgotten the immunity.

It was like watching slow motion as the crystal sped closer and closer to Sarah. He saw that she started to duck, but the crystal changed course. His heart seemed to stop, she wouldn't be able to avoid it. Throw up a barrier Sarah, he thought then wondered if he'd even taught her how. If she died, would it be his fault…?

She wouldn't die…couldn't. His Sarah was too damn stubborn to do something as mundane as dying.

Why was no one helping her? Easy enough…everyone in the crowd with magic was on Medb's side. Goblins couldn't protect Sarah if they'd wanted to…which it was obvious they did. But then Jareth heard it, a shout, and the crowd parting as someone tossed out a magic barrier, mere inches before Medb's crystal found its intended target. The crystal seemed to explode in mid air, showering Sarah in harmless red and silver dust.

**Sarah's** mind raced, berating itself for not thinking of that for herself. No way could she fault Jareth, she'd seen him try…she knew Medb's magic was immune to his. She could only thank the gods that someone had stepped out of the crowd to help her. As she glanced over at the one who saved her, she caught a glimpse of coppery curls before Medb's enraged laughter filled the air.

"Oh, so the winner of my suitor contest has decided against me then?" Sarah's eyes went wide as she realized who was standing before her, panting from the strain of getting to her in time.

"Eireach," she all but whispered. Her eyes left Medb for a moment, she could only hope it wouldn't be her downfall. Eireach stood there, doubled over, his hands to his knees, attempting to regain normal breathing. But there was no mistaking those coppery curls or those dark, jade colored eyes, staring at her now, relieved he'd gotten there in time. When Sarah turned her eyes back to Medb, a wicked little grin was plastered on her face.

"I knew of his little fascination with you," she started, her voice taunting. "You can thank Erina for that." She paused, looking around as if she were searching for the girl. "Oh wait," the pleased smirk spread over her face again, "you can't." Sarah didn't need Medb to tell her that she'd killed Erina, she already knew as much, but if Medb wanted to play that game…then so could Sarah. She slipped on a mocking grin of her own.

"Yes, I knew that." For a brief instant, the grin on Medb's face faltered. That brief instant pleased Sarah more than the millions before it. "YOU can thank Jeaule for that." This time, the smile turned in a fearsome snarl that Sarah couldn't help but goad a bit more. "Oh yeah…and Cyric."

A cry of pure anger ripped from Medb's throat at that. Once she had appeased her fury, she silenced, her eyes darting from Sarah to Jareth to Eireach, obviously trying to think of what to do next. Eireach had regained his breath and moved to Sarah's side, gripping her hand in an attempt to bolster her courage, but it seemed to be what Medb had needed to slip out of her silence.

"Ah yes…" her voice was silky sweet and deadly once more, a satisfied grin on her face as she crossed to Jareth. "Did you know what I found out after some extensive, and rather exhausting on my part, tortures of Lord Tur's soul?" Sarah's face fell as she realized where this was going. There was no time to tell Jareth that it wasn't true. "I found out that your Sarah…this love of your life…FELT for him as well." Sarah watched, her stomach knotting fiercely, as Jareth's eyes darkened. It didn't help her case that Eireach stepped in front of her, blocking her from Jareth. She tried to push him aside, but she couldn't seem to budge him.

"She did nothing Jareth…" Sarah went still at his words. He was helping her….

"I don't want to hear it Eireach," Jareth interrupted, his voice darker, more dangerous…not Jareth at all. She knew that the Darkness was teasing him within his mind and prayed to the gods that he could hold out…that he would listen to Eireach.

"You WILL hear it Jareth!" Sarah was impressed at his confidence, though she feared the repercussions. "She loved you always. If you turn from her now, not only are you a fool, but you are a spineless fool!" Jareth stopped in his tracks, slapped in the face by Eireach's words. Sarah watched his eyes, saw the battle within and tried to go to him, but Eireach's hand on her arm stopped her. "It would not be wise yet. He has to fight that battle alone." She wanted to batter at his hand, bite it if need be, anything to get to Jareth, but sense stole over her…Eireach was right.

Jareth makes his way towards them, the Darkness apparent in his eyes, but he was there too…Sarah couldn't begin to imagine the torment he was going through. Medb seemed amused enough to let this go on for now and sat back in her throne looking quite bored.

"Jareth…?" Sarah asked beseechingly of the man before her. "You can't leave me. You can't let her win." She tried to keep the fear from her voice, but she knew that it would find its place there regardless. Jareth's posture slumped, his eyes lightening ever so slightly as he finally looked to her instead of Eireach.

"Sarah…" She smiled at him, he was fighting it.

"Jareth, you're better than the Darkness, you know that." His face set in a grimace as his hands came up to his head, gripping at his temples as if a blinding pain was settling in. "Jareth!?" Eireach moved before she could, trying to help him.

And that seemed to be what Medb had been waiting for. With a triumphant cry, Medb caught both men within her powers. That glaringly evil grin was set to Sarah again as she raised both men high into the air. A red tinged wall of magic rose up, effectively cutting anyone off from helping Sarah.

"Now the game becomes mine again you little hybrid bitch!" Eireach and Jareth seemed unable to fight against the force that had wrapped around them. Jareth seemed to have lost his battle for the moment and hung in the air, limp and unconscious. Her heart cried out to see it, but her pendant was still warm on her skin…he was okay.

Taking her eyes from Jareth with some difficulty, Sarah sized up Medb. Sarah figured, from the crazed determination and strain on Medb's face, that this was her last ditch effort. All her powers were going into this Sarah realized, a sense of success at last settling on her. If Medb was getting careless enough to put everything she had into this, perhaps…

Sarah prayed to the gods that her thought was correct before falling to her knees and pretending to weep. That was what Medb wanted after all…to break her. She would give Medb the show of her life.

"SARAH NO!" She heard a shout from behind her, it was Jeaule, Cyric undoubtedly by her side. Sarah knew that the two wouldn't be able to get by the magical wall, but hoped that if her plan worked, it might cut the magic. Though…Sarah had no idea what was going to happen when she tried this.

"I will deal with the two of YOU later!" Medb all but hissed at Jeaule and Cyric, who were beating on the translucent red-tinged wall, trying everything they could to get through its undulating surface. She turned her icy blue eyes on Sarah, a pleased smirk on her face, though her eyes remained maniacal. "You must choose who dies." Sarah let her head fall, pretending to weep into one hand, the other curled in her lap…a crystal forming. "CHOOSE!" Medb roared at her from the stage, the last sense of decorum she'd held, gone to her madness and waning magic.

From above, Sarah heard Eireach shout, "For the sake of BOTH worlds Sarah…you know what you have to do!" She didn't want to listen to him, didn't want to think that he would sacrifice his own life for Jareth's…even though he was right and both worlds would fall if Jareth died and the two were separated. She only had to stall a moment longer, the crystal was almost ready.

"I-I…" she stammered to Medb's joy. She could see the triumph building behind those chilling blue eyes. "I choose…" the crystal was whole in her hand, it was now or never. "Jareth." Medb cackled…yes cackled, for there was no other word for the demented laughter that erupted from her…at that, her eyes filled with mirth.

"I wasn't about to let you have either!" She shouted as she broke her hold on the boys and letting them fall. This was Sarah's one instant…she took it, hurling the crystal at Medb as her arms were still lowering. It hit her straight in the chest and her face fell to pained shock. Sarah didn't wait to see her spell spreading, didn't wait to hear Medb's last cry before the spell silenced her forever. Her thoughts were focused on the two men now tumbling from the sky.

"If she can do it…so can I!" She sent her magic out, trying desperately to grab both Eireach and Jareth in mid air, both of whom seemed to have passed out. Eireach probably from the strangle hold her magic had gripped him with before releasing. They slowed, but Sarah cried out as she realized she wouldn't have the strength to stop them herself, they were still falling too fast.

Her heart skipped within her, she would lose them both, she wouldn't be able to save them. Then someone was at her side…it was Cyric his eyes set and his arms reaching out, followed shortly by the tall figure of Jeaule who did the same. They weaved their magic with hers, Medb's wall must have fallen, did that mean Sarah's spell had worked? She didn't' have time to ponder that.

The boys were too near the ground when Cyric and Jeaule joined to stop them completely, but they were able to make the landing a bit softer. Jareth and Eireach would surely have a few scrapes and bruises, but at least their bodies hadn't bounced and broken as Sarah had imagined.

She ran to Jareth, trusting Eireach to Jeaule and Cyric's care. Jareth had fallen so that he was now propped, his back against the wicked looking throne that Medb had just sat in. Spotting the pendant in his hand, she took it and clasped it back around his neck where it should be, kissing his forehead.

It seemed hours that she was sitting there, waiting for him to stir, though in actuality, she knew it had only been minutes. She sat back on her heels and dropped her eyes to her lap, her fingers worrying the pendant around her neck. All she wanted was for him to wake up, to be with him again. Since no one had said anything of Medb and she didn't hear the silky sweetness of her voice…Sarah assumed that her crystal had worked.

An unexpected tear slipped over her cheek at the thought of where her idea had come from.

She had been sitting in the bathtub, her moment alone after a day of rigorous training with Jareth, the bubbles popping around her. She'd been thinking about how cute he'd been when he got mad. He'd come in without warning, the crystal had materialized in her hand before she could think.

A hand on her chin snapped her back into the now, the fingers lifted her face up and a weak voice caressed her ears, "What have I told you about lowering you eyes to me…?" Sarah couldn't help the quick laugh and leaned down to kiss him, careful not to put too much weight on his body…he was surely bruised.

"Sarah," Jareth whispered, she jumped off of him, afraid she'd hurt him.

"What did I hurt? I knew I shouldn't have-" he put a finger to her lips, silencing her.

"Go make your peace with him." His head gestured over to where Cyric and Jeaule had Eireach standing. There was no accusation in Jareth's eyes and that meant more to her than the living statue of Medb standing, frozen in time, a few feet from them. She kissed Jareth once more, helped him sit upright, thinking that the man before her had changed in a miraculous way. There was no chance, before this, that he would have let her, let alone been the one to tell her to go to Eireach.

Standing before Eireach again was strange, what was she supposed to say to him?

"Thank you…" was the first thing out of her lips. Eireach smiled at her, seeming a bit unsure of himself as well. "Oh screw it," she said, crossing to him and hugging him close. He had saved her life…now was not the time for embarrassment. When the hug broke, he pulled back, kissing both of her cheeks before bowing his head slightly, a teasing smile on his face.

"I guess I should get used to calling you Your Highness." Sarah scoffed, smacking his arm gently causing him to grimace.

"OH! I'm so sorry…I didn't mean to hurt you." His laughter was as rich as she remembered.

"I know Sarah." Eireach smiled as he rubbed his bruised arm once more. "See…I told you we'd meet again." She gave half a smile. "Not exactly the circumstances you'd hoped for huh?"

"Not entirely," she laughed, feeling awkward again. Did he still feel the same way about her? If he did, how could she tell him that it wasn't the same for her anymore? He seemed to read her perfectly.

"Really Sarah, if you're to be Queen…you need to work on hiding your thoughts." Her face heated and her eyes dropped, her tongue seemed shriveled and useless, lying still in her mouth. "Don't worry about it Sarah…" he coaxed her face back to his, a warm smile where she'd expected a frown. "I will always care for you, but what we had…" he seemed to falter for words, "what we felt, it was something else, something apart from love." Her heart lightened. "I don't want to call it infatuation…that cheapens it, but-" She cupped his face, stalling his words.

"I know what you mean." Eireach sighed with the relief of not having to put the complexity of what they had into words. "I feel the same." They hugged again, the strained tension between them seemed to be lifted. "Friends?" She asked, holding her hand out when they parted. His strong, warm hand grasped hers and shook.

"Always." A fleeting thought of matchmaking crossed her mind as he turned to inspect the statue Medb had turned into.

He gave an appreciative whistle, "Hell of a spell Sarah." She was the only one who knew that Medb was alive and well inside, able to hear everything that was said around her, but unable to break herself out. It would have to remain that way as well, for fear of someone finding a way to free her.

"Yes, it just came to me…" Laughter to her left stole her attention from Eireach, who was still inspecting the statue with an approving smirk on his face. Jeaule and Cyric had Jareth oh his feet, though he winced when asked to put pressure on his left leg. Apparently, Cyric had made a joke for Jareth and Jeaule were smiling in his direction. If Jareth's smile held a hint of a grimace in it, Sarah figured he'd more than earned the right.

"I can take him from here guys," she said as she took Jareth from her friends, wrapping his arm around her shoulder for support. The gesture seemed to move Jareth inexplicably for the pain in his leg seemed forgotten as he turned, cupped her face in his hands and brushed his lips over hers. A moment later, a very lightheaded Sarah giggled, "What was that for?"

He rested his forehead on hers and sighed, "Because I love you." A smile split her lips, so wide it almost hurt.

"I love you too," she said, her lips caressing his once more.

"That's all we had to do you know…" he chuckled under his breath to Sarah's utter amazement.

"What do you mean?" The light bulb clicked on in her mind, bright and blinding. "The bet…!? That's all…? But we said-" she cut off trying to think of when they had. "We did, didn't we?" A crack to their right and a flash of fiery red hair had them both starting in shock.

"No you bloody well didn't!" It was Morrigan and she looked down right livid.

"But we wo-"

"You got LUCKY!" Morrigan shouted, though Sarah could tell from her eyes that it was more out of aggravation and nerves that she did so. But Sarah wasn't about to tell a goddess to calm down, so she remained silent and merely smiled at her. "Oh don't you give me that. It was so easy!" Morrigan's green eyes were dancing with irritation as her husband arrived, wiping a bit of moisture from his lip where the juice of whatever he'd been eating had dripped. He'd obviously shoved his snack into his mouth in his haste to follow Morrigan.

He looked much more jovial than his wife, who looked at him and rolled her eyes, "Ah there they are! Congratulations!" Dagda looked to his wife with an 'I-told-you-so' smile that spoke volumes to Sarah. So the mighty goddess HAD indeed been worried?

"Oh cut out the joy will you?" she bit, though there was give in her voice now and a smirk playing at her lips. Sarah understood, it was hard to be around this man and not find yourself happy. "So…you-"

"Queen Sarah..." Jareth supplied, obviously unimpressed by her treatment of Sarah.

"She's not Queen yet, impetuous youth." Morrigan seemed to get the hint, though Dagda's jubilant laughter probably didn't help her temper. "Sarah then…you defeated Medb, what shall her punishment be?" So the goddess knew that Medb was still alive?

"She will remain as she is, leave her here and let someone come rule at this castle instead of her." Sarah knew that it wouldn't matter to tell Morrigan, only those on the stage would know of Medb's fate and she trusted them all with her life.

"I do say, I have to approve heartily of that. Forever watching her kingdom being taken over, watching it thrive under the rule of another, is quite fitting punishment." Morrigan turned to the statue Medb had become and waved a hand, a strong stone base forming and a shimmering silver plaque melting into form on the front.

_Medb –Former- Queen of the Fairies_

_Defeated here by Sarah Queen of the Goblins for crimes too numerable against the Goblin Kingdom and life itself. This statue is warning for those who would stand against the might of the Goblin Kingdom and its allies._

"Oh so now she's a Queen, love?" Dagda asked, his whole body rumbling with laughter. Morrigan scoffed at him and waved an irritated, dismissive hand.

"I couldn't' very well put… 'that girl the Goblin King was shagging and engaged to' …now could I?" Morrigan put her arm through the loop of her husbands anyways and in a rare move, smiled at Sarah. "I think we have done all we can now, good bye Lady Sa-"

"Wait!" Sarah shouted before the two could leave. Morrigan turned to her, a slight, knowing smile on her face.

"Yes…?"

"The guards…all those who supported Medb…you know who they are right?" The smirk that spread over Morrigan's face was devilishly pleased.

"I thought you wouldn't ask." Sarah snorted, unladylike, but she didn't care. Her grip on Jareth tightened as she looked up at him.

"They all committed to destroying the Goblin Kingdom and we won't stand for that." She saw Jareth smirk, he knew what she was going to say and it was apparent that he was surprised she even remembered. "They are all to be banished to the Bog of Eternal Stench and imprisoned there. That's where traitors go." Jareth grinned down at her, planting a kiss on her forehead.

"Who will watch over the jailed?" Sarah didn't need to think, she knew just the person for the job.

"I have a friend who lives there, he will be delighted to be of service, Sir Didymus." Morrigan nodded, she obviously knew of whom Sarah spoke.

"It shall be done, Highness." With a little bow that Sarah realized had been for her, Morrigan and Dagda left. A sudden shiver ran through her, she didn't want to be here any longer.

"Let's go home Jareth." Again, his tilted smile beamed down at her.

"I was planning a party since my head knocked on that throne, it will be spectacular."

**Spectacular** it was, Jareth thought that night as he looked out over the guests. It wasn't the most lavish party he'd ever thrown, no…not by a long shot. But it WAS the most important. He smirked as he thought how while not a single invitation had been denied, everyone definitely looked rushed.

His guests were all dressed in their opulent best, though there were obvious wrinkles from not having time to prepare themselves. Their makeup and glamours were all shotty, one woman actually ending up looking more like an Aboveground clown until Sarah hand the heardt to fix it. That had ruined a bit of his and Cyric's fun.

Their friends were at their side, Cyric on Jareth's left and Jeaule on Sarah's right. It was a pleasure to him, allowing Sarah to sit in the Queen's throne before she'd gone through the proper coronation. It soothed his soul to see her there, smiling…she looked so right there at his side. As he'd suspected, after her accomplishment that day, not one soul at the party even whispered a negative comment about her sitting where she was. She'd earned it.

He grinned to himself as he thought of the other announcement he had made that night. He'd nearly shocked poor Jeaule into tears when he'd declared her a Lady in her own right. No longer would she have servant duties, nor would she wait on Sarah. She was free to do as she wished, but as Jareth suspected she chose to stay in the Goblin Castle, in her own quaint little room, though she bid goodbye to the chores with a cheery laugh.

A visual sweep of the room showed him that King Damien had indeed arrived. That rather surprised Jareth, he hadn't thought the tub of a king would take the time and energy it took to come all the way here, but there he was. He was dressed in obscenely yellow clothing that only gave his rotund figure the look of an overly fed canary. Damien was sitting near the middle of the room, talking animatedly to anyone who would give him a moment of their attention.

Most likely he had another hair-brained plan as to how he would take that bay from King Menoas. A headache was building at Jareth's temples at the mere thought of having to listen to that yellow coated ham prattle on and on incessantly. Though, Jareth thought with a grin, it would be quite interesting to see his reaction to the last announcement of the evening.

With an inner chuckle, he saw that Morrigan had arrived and knew that he would get to stop the festivities again to make his grand announcement of the evening. He'd figured that she would know what he was planning to do, but her showing up at this party only verified his suspicions. There was no other reason she would show up.

Morrigan's presence stirred enthralled whispers throughout the crowd, no one knew why she was here. Jareth stood as she ascended the steps towards the throne, she needed no invitation to do so. He took her offered hand in his and blanketed the crowd in a silencing wave of his magic. They would only be mute for a few seconds, but it got his point across.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I am pleased to say that I have one more announcement yet to make." Polite clapping mixed with muffled intrigue. "The final announcement of the night requires the presence of a god, goddess in this case," he added with a grin to Morrigan, who smiled as strangely as she had since she arrived. That was a cause for many a guarded whisper for she didn't smile often. "I have decided what to do with Medb's kingdom. As you know, they fell forfeit to me upon her demise in the act of treason."

A cheer came from the front row and rippled, with mounting volume to every guest in the hall. It was wonderful to hear the support he had, most likely almost doubled with Sarah's accomplishment. Raising his hands to quiet the excited crowd, Jareth continued, taking a glance at Damien so he would be sure to see the expression on his pinched face.

"I have decided to take only a portion of her lands for myself." That created the frantic debate he'd hoped for. He could hear the crowd, 'What's he going to do with it then?' 'He's going to give it to someone.' 'One of us then?' And so forth they whispered, but Jareth had his eyes trained discretely on Damien.

From the look on his piggy, scrunched face, the King obviously was of a mind that Jareth was going to split the lands with him. Jareth smiled, knowing the man couldn't be further from the truth.

"This is what I have decided." He waved his hand and a giant map appeared on the wall behind them. Morrigan's smile spread further still at the sight of it.

"Perfect, Jareth," she whispered to him. The map looked the same, save for the green tinged Goblin Kingdom spread further to the east than it had before. The red tinted part of the map however, previously Medb's domain was about two-thirds its previous size…and it had spread to encompass the Dendum lands.

"Jareth…?" A confused voice exhaled behind him. Jareth turned to Cyric as Morrigan held out her hand to the befuddled Fae. He stepped up to her, amazement clouding his features, his crystal blue eyes dancing with tears Jareth knew wouldn't fall.

"Kneel, Cyric of Dendum." Morrigan bade him. "From this day forth, you shall be known as a King. The eastern lands will be yours to govern as you see fit." Jareth turned to see Jeaule in happy tears, her eyes fixed to Cyric's kneeling form as Morrigan continued his coronation. Sarah was merely smiling at him, pleased beyond words and tears at his actions. "Wear this crown," Morrigan spun her hand in a circle, a delicate circlet of gold and silver materialized from her magic, "in peace and prosperity."

Again Jareth's attention spun away from the proceedings, he'd heard it before, but Damien's face would only be livid this once. And surely enough as Jareth found his fat fellow king, his face was flushed as red as an overcooked pig, his face scrunched further in anger. When Damien spied Jareth glancing at him with a delighted smirk on his face, he spun on the spot, promptly leaving the court, his entourage in his wake.

"You are now King of Dendum, may your kingdom thrive, Your Majesty." Morrigan spoke the final words and Cyric stood, the gold and silver twisted circlet perched on his long chocolate locks. Jareth knew, from the quick, pompous smile on Cyric's face, that he had seen Damien leave in a huff. Nothing else could have made Cyric so happy as seeing Damien angry because of him.

"Congratulations Highness," Jareth teased, clapping his new friend on the back. Cyric's grateful thanks were cut short as Jeaule walked over and he enveloped her in his arms. It was good to see them happy and together in public at last. Jareth clapped his hands and the music started anew. With another grateful nod, Cyric led Jeaule out to the dance floor.

"That was quite the move," Sarah's voice quipped beside him, one delicate brow was winged upwards in a Queenly manner Jareth was sure she didn't even realize she was doing.

"Yes, well," he started, putting an arm around her shoulders, "I do what I can." As she smiled up at him, all the fear he'd felt for her while he was imprisoned with Medb came flooding back to him.

"What's wrong?" Apparently, it had flooded back in his expression as well.

"She told me she'd killed you…did you know that?" Sarah gasped, her hand gripping the back of his shirt. "Wait…that wasn't even the worst of it." Sarah looked doubtful, that brow shooting back up.

"How could she have told you anything worse than she'd killed me?" she teased, most likely trying to keep him from being upset. But she didn't know the extent of Medb's cruelty.

"She told me that you were pregnant when she killed you." He kept his tone indifferent, but searched Sarah's face for a sign to tell him if Medb had lied about that in an attempt to simply make it worse. What he learned from Sarah's startled face made his stomach sink. "You were…?" It took Sarah a moment to gather her senses.

"Are…well…am." She started, obviously nervous because of his very plain fright. "I can't believe I forgot to tell you…I guess I've just been a bit distracted today. Forgive me, love?" She looked bewildered by the worry and dread etched on his face.

"I'm going to be a father?" was all he could whisper. Frightening and enraging images of his own father came to his mind. He remembered how horribly that man treated his mother, the indifference with which he'd treated Jareth himself. It all honestly frightened him, would he…?

"You won't be like him." Sarah's soft words surprised him. How could she…? "I'm learning to read you, but you aren't being very guarded right now. I can tell that you're worried about being a father, it's quite plain. And I know your father was an ass…so I put two and two together." She smiled at him, cupping his face in her hands. "You are a far better man than he ever was." Her lips lingered on his, urging him to believe her words. His hands sought her waist…one splaying over her abdomen where she was even now guarding their child.

Their child, he thought with a sudden flip of his stomach.

"Don't think of what that rotten man did to you…you aren't an ass like him." Jareth couldn't help the smirk that quirked his lip.

"Most of the time." He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer as she smiled on his lips.

"Most of the time…."

**(A/N: And there you go...not really a cliffy this time, but there is one more chapter, an epilogue if you will. I promise this one won't bother you as much as HP's. LOLOL It's horrible that this story is coming to an end, but I am so excited about the next story!**

**Speaking of the next story…I do have a winner for my contest. It was BEYOND difficult to choose as all the entries were wonderful. It came down to a choice between two though and the winner, well…won, because her story was actually FREAKISHLY close to Jeaule's true back story. The fact that she did this was what ultimately won it for her. The other one I was fighting over was the one and ONLY entry for Cyric…it actually made me lean back in my chair, slap my head and go, "Now why the hell didn't I think of that?" That's what made it so very difficult a choice.**

**But anyways…without further ado, the winner is the lovely Miss Kaline Reine with a VERY close runner up of my dear friend Kerichi! You two were so difficult to choose over that…while Kaline gets the grand prize, there is going to be a little reoccurring character for Kerichi as well. **

**Thank you to ALL who entered the contest, you guys were AMAZING!!**

**IMPORTANT NOTE**

**If you entered the contest, I am planning on posting the entries as a sort of diary one shot entry type thing and I want the permission from the writers to do so. Your name will be posted above your entry and such you will be given full credit for it. So if you did write an entry for me and you don't mind me posting it in the one shot, please tell me I have the permission to do so in your review!**

**Those who read and reviewed last chapter, making me a happy, happy writer were:**

**angelbabe2000, ****BattleofEvermore, ****darklady26, ****Dillwave, ****Fun Sized-Witch, ****Kaline Reine, ****Kerichi, ****maskedpainter, ****Miru88****, notwritten, ****roguegambit****, and ****The Banshee's Tears**

**Thanks guys!!) **


	32. The Future Unfolds

**Disclaimer:**** I own no rights to anything you recognize from the movie and/or the book. Everything else IS mine and I would like them to be treated as such. grin **

**I drew out what I imagined for Sarah's wedding dress, so if you want to see it, go to my DeviantArt page. It's where the 'homepage' link on my FF front page leads. I would love to hear your comments on it!! **

**I would like to announce that three wonderful people have allowed me to post up their entries to the contest and they have been posted up as a one shot along side today's chapter! Go to my homepage and click on "What Might Have Been" to check them out!**

**Sarah's** head was spinning. Here she was, standing in her dressing room and it was all sinking in to her. She was getting married to Jareth today. The thought made her legs feel ominously jelly-like and she forced herself down into a chair before they gave on her.

"I wish I could make you feel better," Jeaule crooned over her as she brushed at Sarah's hair. "There is something I could give you, but since you're pregnant…it's not advisable." Sarah groaned. It was nice of her friend to want to help, but telling her there was something that could help and then taking the hope away like that was cruel.

"Don't worry about it," she said with a forced determination. Sarah sat up straighter, urging her body to relax. "I'm tough," she offered with a quick smile that Jeaule returned heartily. It wasn't like she was scared about marrying Jareth, quite the contrary, but she could help but be a bit nervous thinking on what it all meant. She would be Queen tomorrow.

No longer was it a fanciful dream, it was reality being shoved into her face and it was overwhelming her. Marriage to an unbelievably obstinate man whom she couldn't help but love all the more for it, a baby growing within her that neither had planned, but each were delighted about…and then add her coronation tomorrow and it was no wonder it felt like there were tank sized butterflies in her stomach.

"Do you think I'll be good at it…?" Sarah hadn't even heard her own voice, but the brush had stopped in her hair, mid stroke. Jeaule leaned down, resting her chin on Sarah's shoulder and looking at her in the mirror, a serene smile on her face.

"You'll be magnificent." Tears crowded in her eyes, each vying for the first slide down her cheek. "Oh stop now…I just finished your make up," Jeaule told her with a chuckle as she went back to arranging Sarah's hair, lacing and nestling the silver vines through it lovingly. "You're going to look so lovely today," her friend said in an attempt to get Sarah's mind off her worries.

"Yes," she sighed as she looked over at her dress on the mannequin. "It's not exactly what I'd always envisioned, but it's so gorgeous." It's true that it wasn't what she'd always envisioned, but a Celtic marriage was different and red was the standard dress color here.

Jeaule grinned dreamily as her eyes scanned the dress again, its many slanted, layered skirts would make Sarah look like a gorgeous, walking rose, "It's the most exquisite dress I've ever seen." Sarah heard the wistfulness in her friends voice, Cyric had better propose soon, she thought with a smirk of her own.

Her thoughts drifted, as Jeaule finished up her hair, to her meeting with Maesia that morning. The woman had explained to her the meaningful points of Celtic marriage, how they took place outside so that nature itself could bless the union. Nature, apparently, was very important to the Celtic way of things since they believed that the soul existed within and outside of a person.

Sarah had smiled at that, thinking it fancy, but Maesia had looked quite serious as she'd told her how the soul manifests in the trees, rocks, water and even sunlight. To those in the Underground, who'd always followed the Celtic way, humans and the world around them were intertwined, the soul tied to the very spirit of the earth. And so, their belief if marriage was that two souls would join together so their strengths would be twice as great and their hardships only half as hard.

This, Sarah had chuckled at and quipped, "I hope so, because Jareth and I are quite the hardship just being together. I can't imagine what ELSE we might have to endure that would be harder on ourselves than each other." Maesia had laughed along with her, knowing her son was a handful who'd picked another handful as his bride.

"I just want you to remember that marriage isn't something that we enter into lightly," Maesia had smiled at her, brushing a bit of Sarah's hair from her face. "It is a union of two souls, two hearts and two minds." Tears had crept into Maesia's violently green eyes at that. "I can't think of two people who have ever fit more perfectly than you and my son, however stubborn you both are." Sarah had never been good with tears, but she'd hugged her soon to be mother-in-law and gone to fetch Toby.

That had been Jareth's wedding present to her. He'd arranged, through some tricky magic, for Toby to be there the day before and the day of the wedding. He'd gone through a lot of trouble to set up the elaborate lie that Toby would be spending the weekend at a friends house. Sarah was so happy to have her brother here that she didn't care what Jareth had done to make it happen, Toby was all that mattered to her in the Aboveground anymore.

And he loved it so much here too. He and Jareth got along famously, once Toby had realized that it wasn't like the first time he'd been here. Right now, he was off with Jareth and Cyric, getting dressed for the ceremony…ritual…whatever it was that they called it. All Sarah knew was it was NOTHING like a normal Aboveground marriage and she'd spent the last week practicing everything that they would have to say and do. The last thing she wanted on the day of her wedding was to look like an idiot who had no clue what she was doing.

"You're all done," Jeaule chipped as she set the last pin into place. Sarah looked into the mirror and was pleased to see that her hair did indeed look as it had on the night Jareth had so rudely swept her into the crystal ballroom. She knew that she could have easily magicked her hair up like this, but the simple action of having Jeaule do it for her had given them both something to do to still nerves.

"Thank you Jeaule, it's perfect." Jeaule grinned as she used her magic to dress and prepare herself in seconds.

"Well, bully to me since I never saw it." Sarah shared her friends laughter and a thought later, her mannequin was quite naked across the room and she stood before the floor length mirror, fully dressed. "Oooh," Jeaule sighed as she strode over to Sarah, her fingers fidgeting with the dresses multi layered skirt to remove unwanted folds. "It looks so much better on you!"

"I guess I do put a little more life into it," Sarah teased, her fingers skimming over the brilliant, ruby material, each flouncing layer with its own separate dark red trimming. Jeaule placed her hands on Sarah's shoulders, turning her from the mirror to face her.

"Are you ready then?" With a deep breath, Sarah nodded. Hooking her arm through Jeaule's, the two teleported to the location, the wide open clearing by the euphoria fount Jareth had taken her to not so long ago. Jareth was already there and Sarah had to stifle the Aboveground superstition of the groom not seeing the bride before the wedding…those rules had no sway here.

His eyes said all she needed to know about how he thought she looked, for they glazed over with a sudden lust that mixed delightfully with bemused approval. Only Jareth could give her a look like that. He was dressed simply, yet elegantly, in black breeches and a red billowing shirt that was cut low as his others, leaving a tantalizing view of his chest.

"You look gorgeous," he smirked as he lifted her hand to his lips.

"That's the only thing you're kissing till this is over." She snipped as he started kissing his way up her arm. "I might have to swallow you seeing me before this happens, but these," she gestured to her painted lips, "are mine till you say 'I do'." A smile played at the corners of his lips as he looked up at her.

"But we do not say 'I do' in these vows." She tried not to let embarrassment grip her…she'd forgotten that. Oh gods…how much of this would she forget? She was going to look like an idiot.

To regain a little composure for herself, she pulled her hand from his and laced it through his arm as they walked to where they needed to be, "Well, sucks to be you then," she said, trying to be gruff, but the smile on her lips betrayed her. For his part, Jareth merely smiled as he led her to the east side of the large rock circle that had been set up in the clearing.

Sarah as thankful for the four candles, each placed in the position of a cardinal direction on the rock circle, for direction…she was hopeless when it came to directions. They took their position at the eastern candle and waited for all the guests to find their spots. Everyone had come, save for Damien, but that was no real loss. With two resounding cracks, their final two guests arrived.

Morrigan and Dagda were to officiate the wedding, as they had for so many kings and queens in the Underground over the centuries. Both throwing them a quick grin, they took their places, Dagda at the altar located in the center of the rock ring and Morrigan at the ring's edge, ready to cast the circle.

Sarah's grip on Jareth's arm tightened and his free hand rested upon it, "Ready?" He asked with a bright, infectious grin. Smiling up at him, calm spread over her that had eluded her all morning and she heard Dagda ring the bell three times, signifying the start of the ceremony…ritual…whatever.

With a reassuring squeeze, Jareth began their walk around the ring. One circle around from the direction of the sunrise, she'd been told, symbolized the growth in their relationship. Step by step through that rotation with Jareth, she knew that they would indeed grow as they learned to handle the other, learned to meld their tempers and passions into one cohesive whole.

As they came full circle, Sarah released his arm, lacing her fingers through his instead. They made their way towards the altar and Dagda now as Morrigan walked around the periphery of the circle four times. She held elemental items in her hands which she used once at every cycle and candle, a prayer to each in turn. But she was not who Sarah and Jareth were intent on, Dagda stood before them at the altar, the usual beaming grin upon his face that no one was immune to.

"Do the two of come here with intent to join your lives as one in the eyes of the Gods, of family and of your friends?" Sarah hadn't thought it possible till this moment for a person to speak with laughter in their very tone, but there was something overwhelmingly happy about Dagda that she knew was only enhanced by the proximity of the euphoria fount. They both declared they had come willingly 'in perfect love and perfect trust', saying exactly the words Dagda needed to hear. "Then I must ask if there is anyone present who sees reason that these two should not be joined?"

Sarah had to stifle a chuckle as Jareth turned, his eyes daring anyone to say a thing. She couldn't imagine that there would be a soul present who would dare say a word, even if they didn't approve. When his words were met with silence, Dagda clapped his hands together merrily and nodded his head to them. This part was a bit out of order for her thinking, but she did as she'd been taught at this point. They both conjured the others ring, slipping it onto the proper finger.

Now it was time to see if she remembered what she'd been practicing so determinedly all week…gods knew she'd driven Toby near mad with it yesterday. He'd run off to play with Jareth, she thought with an inner groan.

They joined their right and left hands together, their arms forming a figure eight, the ancient and powerful symbol of infinity and eternity. Dagda lifted a silky red ribbon and tied it loosely around their bound hands

With a steadying breath and a bolstering smile from Jareth, she spoke, "I, Sarah, commit myself to be with you, Jareth…in joy and adversity," she had to force herself not to laugh at that, but both she and Jareth smiled. "In wholeness and brokenness, in peace and turmoil," her mind cried out for some peace after the ordeal with Medb. "To live with him faithfully all of our days. May the Gods give me the strength to keep these vows." She hadn't meant for that last sentence to sound quite as pleading as she had, but the whole of the crowd chuckled along with Jareth as he repeated the vows to her.

"…May the gods give me the strength to keep these vows," he said with a smiling sigh as he rested his forehead to hers. "So be it." With a cheer behind them from the crowd, Dagda cut the ribbon from their hands and handed them a silver chalice. They each drank in turn and then held the cup so that the other could drink, symbolizing the need for a balance between apartness and togetherness as the future unfolds before them.

Dagda smiled at them as they set the cup back down before him and opened his arms wide, "Be understanding and patient, each with the other." Jareth and Sarah smiled and rolled their eyes at each other. "Be free in the giving of affection and warmth. Be sensuous with one another." Sarah couldn't help the tiny gulp of laughter, but Dagda continued, undeterred, "Have no fear and let no the ways of the unenlightened give you unease, for the Gods are with you now and always." Sarah's heart fluttered as she realized they were getting close to the end…she was nearly married. "The two of you are now," Jareth's grin spread, probably knowing he would be able to kiss her soon, she thought with a smirk. "Husband and wife."

Jareth pulled her to him with a jerk, his lips finding hers with urgency and an ardor he'd never quite shown before. It was as if it were their first kiss, their first gift to each other as a couple. Her head swam for the second time that day, but with a pleasant haze this time as everyone gathered in to congratulate them and Morrigan banished the circle she'd cast in the beginning.

Before them, Dagda beamed ever brighter and announced in a booming, pleasant voice, "The circle is now open, but unbroken. May the peace of the Gods go in our hearts!" He rang the bell three times again and in a whirl of magic linen covered tables appeared and goblins in fineries appeared with food covered trays.

Everyone was laughing and smiling as they took their seats. Jeaule came around to help Sarah arrange her dress so she would actually be ABLE to sit. Their two great friends sat on either side of them, toasting to long life and happiness to the roaring cheers of the crowd.

It had all been perfect.

As Sarah sat back in her chair now, the moon shimmering through the canopy of leaves above them, giving the last few guests natures romantic lighting, she was in wonder at how perfect it had all been. The ring on her finger was still a strange weight that would shock and delight her every time she saw it. The man at her side would prove to be nothing less, she thought with a cheery grin.

She leaned her head over onto his should and sighed contentedly as she watched Cyric and Jeaule sway on the dance floor, "I love you."

"Ah you say that now," he teased, his arm draping over her shoulder lightly. Sarah turned her face up to him with a pout which only delighted him all the more. "Oh I love you too…I just married you, didn't I?" His face was alight with mischief as he kissed her lightly.

"Yeah, yeah…" They fell into silence, both of them watching their friends on the dance floor, neither of them wanting to join them just yet.

"Why is he so excited about getting those terrifying lands from Medb?" Jareth's chest rumbled with laughter.

"Not really the time to ask that now is it, love?" She shrugged as she lifted her head from Jareth's shoulder.

"I've been wondering all week, but I've been distracted by the wedding." Gesturing around herself, she shrugged again. "Well, now its over and there's nothing to distract me." He chuckled again, pulling her back to his chest.

"The lands of the Underground change to match their owners personality." It was as simple as that huh? "My Labyrinth is a good example of that." Sarah smirked.

"So it shows you're an unstable, ever changing, sometimes frightening man…?" A thoughtful look crossed her face as she pretended to contemplate that. "Quite accurate I'd say." The look on his face was near a pout and she kissed him for it. "But then there are places like this…that show there are wonderful, beautiful parts of you. Even if they are a little harder to find, they're worth the effort." That seemed to perk him up for he stood up and held out a hand, apparently he wanted to dance now.

"Yeah, yeah…just don't tell anyone."

With a sly smile, she took his hand and slid onto the dance floor, "Never." He spun her towards Cyric and Jeaule, the layers of her skirt fanning out in a brilliant display. "So, that works the same with Damien's lands then?" Cyric perked up at the sound of Damien's name. His eyes cleared of the romantic fog as he looked over at Sarah.

"What about Damien?" His voice held an edge of warning in it.

"Sarah wanted to know why you were so excited about Medb's run down lands," Jareth explained. Cyric smirked at that.

"So you figured that's why Damien's lands are flat, useless prairies?" The four chuckled as Sarah nodded.

"Figured it fit in with him being a lazy ass that cares more about his next meal than his subjects well being." She'd hit the nail on the head with that comment for both Jareth and Cyric's gazes had gone dark with ill-disguised hatred for the man.

"Many of them will most likely move to my lands once I officially take them over next week." That thought, at least, seemed to cheer Cyric immeasurably. Though Sarah figured the woman in his arms had a lot to do with it too.

"Damien won't like that," Jeaule stated prophetically, but no one argued with her…they all figured she was right.

Jareth's frowned as he turned to Cyric, "I fear that we might have to deal with Damien sooner or later and it's not going to be pleasant, for either of us." Cyric looked abashed.

"It wouldn't be your fight Jareth. You don't have to-"

"Yes I do," Jareth interrupted. "And I will. You are friend and family to this kingdom now and anyone that challenges you…challenges us as well," he said, holding Sarah all the closer. Cyric didn't seem to know what to say to that, but after a moment of stunned silence, nodded thankfully. "But this isn't the time to worry over such things. This is a party." Jareth and Cyric spun both girls in unison, pulling laughter from lips that had been frowned in worry.

Together, the four danced and laughed, the euphoria fount trickling happily in the background.

**(A/N: Well, this story ends now. sniffle It was SO hard getting this chapter out of myself, I really didn't want it all to end, but the sequel is coming. If you guys want to read it and you don't want to miss anything, make sure to fave me so you get the announcement when it comes out. I am going to take a week or two to get my bearings and then I will start posting it up. I can't wait for the new story, it's gunna be fun…and MUCH more action-y than this one. I think you'll like it.**

**The reviewers who made me happy as pie last week were:**

**angelbabe2000, BattleofEvermore, darklady26, Dillwave, Fun-SizedWitch, Kaline Reine, Kerichi, maskedpainter, Miru88, notwritten, phantome101, roguegambit and The Banshee's Tears.**

**You guys have made this such a spectacular journey for me and I look forward to continuing it for you all in a couple weeks!)**


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